


The 25 Days of Phrack

by RositaLG



Series: Christmas Phrack [2]
Category: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
Genre: Christmas Smut, F/M, Fluff and Smut, One Shot Collection, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-01
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-03 11:28:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 24,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8710834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RositaLG/pseuds/RositaLG
Summary: Your smutty advent calendar of Phrack.





	1. Tattoo

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to the 25 Days of Phrack! Each day I'll be writing a smutty one shot from December 1st through the 25th. If you feel like helping/challenging me, leave me a random word or phrase in the comments or via my brand new tumblr account (RositaLG). I’ll use what I can and collect the leftovers for Friday Phrack! Y’all ready? *stretches neck and fingers* Let’s do this!  

Sunsetdreamer chose the word tattoo for the 5th year in a row. Her consistency has awarded her the honor of "Day One" posting. PS: I hope you are still asking for tattoo fic when we are 80 and in hoverchairs that are controlled with our brainwaves.

OOOOO

“I was just looking at his tattoo.”

“You've seen it before.”

-Marked for Murder

OOOOO

Jack was certain he had been on his best behavior.

He had to have been because his ex-wife had been directly in front of them (with her new lover) and her father (and his current boss) had been directly behind them and only a fool would let Phryne Fisher lead him astray in such a precarious situation.

He recalled trying to maintain a polite, _public_ rapport with her but then she had told him that endearing childhood story about the half-starved little hellion she had once been, which had forced him to reconcile that image with the full grown hellion he knew her to be now and he’d had no choice but to get a little lost in her eyes at the wonder that was Phryne Fisher. Before he knew what was happening, his hands moved of their own accord to decorate that always well-coordinated neck of hers with his personal scarf. He controlled himself long enough to refrain from kissing her, although, it had been difficult when her eyes glazed over and she stared at him a little in wonder herself. 

He knew definitively that he had reigned himself in long enough to turn his attention back towards the game.

But Phryne had had other plans, somehow discreetly weaseling her arm through his and warming his skin through his coat in the crisp afternoon air. It was a manageable enough distraction but before long, the hand that had been resting on his forearm slid further to his wrist, where her fingertips played lightly with the skin under his shirt cuff before moving lower still, into the palm of his hand. She chatted politely on, seemingly unaware of the fact that she was sending adrenaline coursing through his body like a wildfire after a drought.

And God had there been a drought.

It was completely understandable for him to be on edge as he walked her back to the Hispano. He was only mortal after all. So when Phryne reached out to smooth the lapels of his trench coat, and made the flirty (and normally benign) comment about celebrating Abbotsford’s victory together, Jack shouldn't have been surprised when he finally, at long last, lost the remnants of his composure.

But pinning her up against the door of the Hispano? 

That he had never expected.

He never said a word, just stared down at her rosy red lips and wind-blushed cheeks before taking the plunge and kissing her the way he had always wanted to kiss her.

She had practically melted like butter in his arms before kissing him back with just as much vigor. They only pulled apart again with the mutual and silent understanding that a bed was urgently required.

Jack didn’t precisely remember their drive home, but he did remember the impatient throbbing in his cock as she furiously raced to his house. And he recalled with perfect clarity every kiss, bite, and scratch that came after. Along with the smell of her cunt as he sucked on the sweet flesh at the apex of her thighs, the way her warm, wet mouth yielded to his own firm, aching body, and the sound she made when she cried out his name in desperate, keening pleasure.

Jack’s greedy body stirred at last night’s memories as he relived them and he ached for her once again. However, he wouldn’t disrupt the sight beside him for all the tea in China. She was sleeping on his chest, his bed sheet tightly pulled up around them. Jack’s fingertips were dancing, sight unseen, along her lower back, gently tracing the warm curve of her spine, up and down in a quiet, soothing rhythm that felt dangerously intimate.

As he was contemplating their eventual need for food, she stirred awake. He watched as she was lost for a moment, unable to recall where she was and why. When it came to her, she slowly lifted the sheet to take in their entwined (and did he mention _very_ naked?) bodies. He wondered if she was having regrets about their night together. Then again, she might be assessing how quickly she could have him again. With her, one never quite knew.

“Looking for a tattoo?” He asked groggily as he tugged the sheet back over his cold body and closed his eyes once more.

“Maybe.” She grinned, loving being caught red-handed.

“I’m ready for you, if that’s what you’re after.” He replied, never opening his eyes.

She scraped her teeth over his shoulder playfully and he couldn’t fight the smile that appeared on his lips at the impish action.

“I love when you get smart.” She confessed as she rolled to her side of the bed and he finally opened his eyes to see where she had gone. “Any chance you have another tin of these stashed somewhere?” She inquired as she realized they had used up their entire supply of protection the night before.

“I’m afraid not.” He couldn’t bring himself to regret making Phryne Fisher moan with pleasure all night long, even if it meant a brief recess today.

“Mm, then we’ll have to make do.” She smirked as she slipped from the bed. “ _Coming_?” She asked less than innocently as she nakedly pranced out the door.

He groaned at her teasing but paused when he heard his shower running. About a thousand images flashed through his mind at once and he shoved the sheet off him quickly and followed her into the bathroom. She was already inside and waiting for him, the steam from the water clouding around her and blocking her body from view.

“Really? The shower? After this case?” He asked, even as he joined her under the warm spray.

Did he mention he was only mortal?

“ _Especially_ after this case.” Phryne looked surprised by his question. “I had to sit in that locker room with you, steam all around us, for an eternity. It was torturous.” She ran her hands up his chest and his mind flashed back to their kiss at the car before realizing what she had said.

In the locker room, he had been staring mind-numbingly at a block of ice for an hour and she had spent that entire time wanting to...? 

His thoughts went sinfully dark as she reached for his shampoo.

“Really?” He inquired. 

“For an hour and...thirteen minutes, I sat there and thought of all the ways I could have you before that ice melted.” She assured him. “I had six options before Dot even showed up with the dinner hamper from the car.”

His once bored memory twisted into the same fantasy that Phryne had spent over an hour concocting and he had another revelation.

“I’m an idiot.” He informed her frankly as he stole the shampoo from her.

“Yes, but you’re a focused idiot and I can certainly work with that.” She smirked as she lathered her hair with his shampoo and rinsed herself clean again. He did the same.

“Let me make it up to you.” He offered as he pressed her against the tile. “Tell me what you came up with.”

“Is that wise?” She asked, glancing down at the state of his erection.

“Trust me.” He assured her.

She looked him over and drew out her pause to torture him just a little.

“When you were leaning backwards on that bench, pondering the case,” she stroked him lightly once, “it was all I could do to not settle between your wide legs and take you in my mouth.” She bit her lip even now as she remembered the restraint. “It would have been so easy, we were all alone…”

“What else?” He inquired as he let his hands slip up and down her waist.

“Against the lockers, with you behind me.” She teased his cock once again and he flipped her around, wanting this to be about her. She whimpered as her nipples pressed into the cool tile of the shower and Jack burrowed his fingers into her warm center. As he pressed into her, the underside of his stiff cock slipped between her supple cheeks and twitched violently, making Jack groan. It was almost like being inside her twice.

"What else?" He asked again as his fingers began to stroke her walls.

“With my hands on the rack above us, I could put my thighs over your shoulders and let you have me with your tongue.” She circled her hips and his fingers sunk deeper inside her as she pleasured herself harder with his palm. His free hand slapped hard against the tile, desperate for more leverage.

“Oh, god yes.” Jack moaned as he bit into her shoulder, imagining the taste of her on his tongue. It wasn’t hard to do, her body was already dripping hot desire down his fingers and filling the humid shower with her heavenly scent. She was everywhere: under his mouth, around his fingers, in his nostrils, against his chest...

“But most of all,” she panted as her hips echoed the thrusts her mind’s eye was conjuring, “I wanted to shove you down on that bench and ride you blind.”

“Fuck, Phryne.” Jack hissed, openly fucking the curves of her pert ass as he thrust against her wildly.

“Yes, Jack, yes!” She cried out as her shaking thighs clamped tightly around his hand and she came violently, pulsing around his fingers and sending Jack’s nervous system spiraling into chaos. He shattered hard before pitching forward against the wall, needing its assistance to keep from blacking out completely.

Phryne turned around and slowly slid to the floor of the shower and Jack followed suit. They stayed that way, side by side, for a few silent minutes before Jack began to laugh.

Yesterday, he had scolded himself for thinking about kissing her in public. Today, he was fucking her from behind in his shower because they had already run out of protection. it was the most ridiculous...

He laughed even harder and Phryne looked over at him, a grin threatening to emerge before she finally broke down as well, her laugh echoing against the tile. The joyous sound reminded him of why they were here in the first place. She was a goddamn delight to his senses.

He reached up and turned the tap off and when he thought he could stand again, he sought out towels for them. He found one and wrapped her up in it before finding one for himself.

“Thank you.” She murmured as she gripped the towel tightly around her, still looking quite dazed.

The sight of her surrounded by steam, appearing before him in nothing but a white towel, triggered Jack's memory of their very first case. Now, they had come full circle and were closing the first chapter of their lives together with a matching tableau. After all, there was no going back now.

Jack cradled her cheek with his hand as she stared attentively at him, trying to read his thoughts.

“Thank you.” He told her sincerely, hoping she would understand all of the ways she had made his life lighter and brighter since that first day. 

She rewarded his statement with that dreamy look of hers once more and his heart pounded in his chest. He raised his eyebrow slightly, silently asking if she was comfortable with his sentiment.

She nodded once, looking only slightly embarrassed by his sincerity before pulling him tightly against her and holding him close.

“You’re a good man, Jack Robinson.” She murmured into his chest.

“Mm.” He shrugged, not entirely convinced. “A better man probably would have found you some clothes by now.” He pointed out as he pressed his smirk into the top of her wet hair.

“Well then, we’re a perfect match.” She smiled, pulling away slightly. “You see, I’ve always had a knack for getting into trouble.” She confessed as she let her finger wander down his neck, past his sternum towards his belly button.

Jack grabbed her by the wrist before she could make it past his towel line and Phryne grinned mischievously, thinking she had won. But before she could celebrate her victory, he brought her wrist upwards again and sucked the straying finger into his mouth, making her entire body flush and her eyes go dark.  

"You and me both, Miss Fisher." He promised.


	2. Massage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Babsmd requested a massage scene.

 

Jack watched closely as Phryne sat up cautiously in bed. She would never say she was hurting, but he could tell her muscles weren’t cooperating. Last night, he had kissed her bruises lightly, tracing them with his tongue and lips until she was sighing, but after a still night in bed, her usually lithe and graceful body was struggling to even stand up straight.

“Can I…?”

“No.” She cut him off stubbornly.

“Are you sure?”

A glare that meant his breakfast depended on his silence was thrown in his direction.

“Just trying to help.” He muttered under his breath as he reached for the morning paper that Mr. Butler had left him.

Phryne ignored him and began running her own bath. She always became more independent when she was feeling weaker, as if she had to prove to herself that she could still manage things alone. She couldn't bear the thought of relying on anyone else, including Mr. Butler or Dot, when she was _perfectly capable_ of doing it herself.

“I’m perfectly capable of running my own bath, thank you very much.” She finally replied as she entered the hot water gingerly and Jack had to disguise his snort with a shake of the newspaper for fear of sending her over the edge.

“What are your plans today?” She asked, changing the subject.

“Lying in bed, reading, and making love to you, if you’ll let me.”

“But it’s Monday.”

“Is it?” He asked wryly from behind his paper. She was hidden from view but he could practically feel her petulantly burning a hole through it. He peeked over the top to confirm his suspicions.

“Jack, you don’t have to hover. I’m fine now.” She sighed.

Yes, now, he thought to himself as his heart faltered in his chest. The memory of finding her cruelly abandoned, tied to a dirty bed, with ropes burning into her skin was all too fresh. Still, Jack knew that she’d never forgive him if she thought he felt sorry for her so he pushed his feelings aside and told her another (equally true) story.

“Phryne, I love you, but the world doesn’t revolve around you and you alone.” He assured her, not giving her a lick of sympathy as he set the paper aside. “When you go home at night, I do all the paperwork, and deal with loads of other cases, and supervise a staff of constables among whom my best man is Hugh Collins. Not to mention, the love of my life almost died at the hands of a crazed opiate smuggler last night. So yes, I took the day off.” He summed up. “But, if you’d prefer solitude, I could just as easily lay in my hammock all afternoon with a thermos of Mr. Butler’s lemonade.”

Phryne heaved a heavy sigh as she realized she had been short with him. She let herself sink under the water dramatically. By the time she came back up, Jack had moved to the side of the tub.

“If you think drowning will earn you sympathy, you’re wrong.” He smiled slowly as he pushed her wet hair out of her eyes.

“I’m sorry.” She murmured. “I’m afraid I make a terrible patient.”

“I hadn’t noticed.” Jack said dryly.

“I wouldn’t blame you for wanting to go enjoy your day off. You’ve earned it.”

“I plan to.” He agreed but her bruised wrist stole his attention. Phryne caught him eyeing it and offered it to him, a silent olive branch in succumbing to his care.

Jack kissed it once and gave it back to her and she offered her other wrist willingly. Jack did the same and she sunk down lower into the water, relaxing immediately.

He watched as her toes peeked out of the edge of the tub, the water reflecting the purple rings around her ankles. His memory drew in the rope on its own and Jack had to shake the image from his mind. Instead, he chose to make a new memory, running his hands up her calves before massaging her feet carefully.

“I’m quite fond of your red toes.” He confessed.

“You are?” She smiled in surprise.

“Mm. From the very first night I saw them.”

She fought hard to recall what night he was referring to before landing on their night at the RAF base.

“There you go.” He smirked, knowing she was remembering correctly without him having to say a word.

“I thought that night might be a bad memory for you. I seem to remember you were quite jealous.”

He shrugged, his preferences a mystery to him as well.

“Mm. I’ll keep the polish at the ready then.” She wiggled her toes at him.

“Please do.” He encouraged. “But first, could you kindly get out of this tub? I want to touch you properly.” He asked as he stood up and held out a towel.

“Inspector Robinson...” She tsked his blunt honesty but she stood up and walked into his arms all the same. Jack took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her and gaze into her sharp eyes.

“You know, I’m also quite fond of you.” He murmured quietly. Phryne closed her eyes as he pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“The feeling is quite mutual.” She assured him.

"Yeah?"

"Yes." She sighed. 

"Good." 

Jack brought her back to bed and she lifted her arms straight over her head, letting her body stretch into a pose that looked wildly similar to the painting hanging above her, the one that usually reminded him of their first kiss. But after last night... 

“It’s more comfortable for my shoulders.” She confessed, reading his concern. She looked worried that he might not be able to overcome the mental images plaguing his brain and he analyzed her for a moment before he made a definitive choice. He crawled over top of her and joined his hands in hers, intertwining their fingers intimately above their heads and resting his forehead lightly against hers.

“Jack…” She whispered. The unexpected intimacy in the face of her pain caught her off-guard and she swallowed back her emotion.

He kissed her eyelids and nose affectionately and released one hand to guide her thigh around his waist. He entered her gently, not wanting to hurt her.

She sighed as he filled her completely before sliding out slowly and beginning again. They continued the slow, hypnotic pace until it built into a deep, bone-tingling pressure that curled her toes and tightened his grip in her hand. He let out a low moan that rumbled through their bodies, triggering each other and sending them both trembling through their shared release.

When he came to his senses, Jack made to move from her but she reached out for his cheek, keeping him within her reach.

“I don't know what I would do without you.” She whispered. Her lips were feather-light against his and her statement felt like a prayer.

“You’ll never have to find out.” Jack assured her.


	3. Fedora

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I get one writer’s choice chapter a year. I wrote a Fedora fic this year instead of a Tie fic. Aren’t you proud? I’m broadening my horizons.

 

“May I ask what's so special about this wine?” Jack asked as he took the glass from her.

“I crushed it myself.” She answered proudly.

“What with?” He asked curiously.

“With my feet.” She smirked. “Mainly.” She added flirtatiously, hoping Jack’s stoic mind might fill in the blanks. She was rewarded with a wince as he swallowed the juice gamely.

“Not a bad drop.” He smiled politely, recovering from his surprise.

“And... I need to thank you for coming to my rescue.” She added.

“Is that what I did?” A faint blush appeared on his hollow cheeks and she inwardly beamed with pride at getting the reaction from him.

“Eventually. And you paid dearly in the millinery sense so…” She produced the hat she had stowed away for a particularly dramatic reveal. She stood up to set it on his head, adjusted it to a slightly more roguish angle, and took a step back to examine her work. “There. For the next woman who uses you for target practice.” She mused.

He smirked and Phryne unconsciously licked her lips.

“How’s it look, Miss Fisher?” Jack wondered aloud.

To say fedoras suited him was an understatement. Like his chiseled features when he was wearing them, Jack himself was perpetually half-hidden in the shadows, always just out of her reach. And much like his hat, he always ended up slightly askew, leaning on whatever hard surface he managed to brush up against (at the moment, it was her mantle) with such a relaxed grace that it drove her mad. It was impossible to ignore the unsolicited images of that elbow lazily propping himself up on her mattress instead of the local architecture.

Jack’s gaze was burning through her, so clearly reading her mind, that she was finding it hard to breath. Then, she saw the slightest quirk of amusement at the corner of his mouth.

He knew precisely what he was doing to her.

And he liked it.

God damn it.

Phryne felt desire flood between her thighs and she leaned briefly against the mantle herself, trying to find solid ground once more.

“As handsome as always, Jack.” She recovered weakly but immediately followed it with a sip of her juice to occupy her hands and lips.

With an uncharacteristic amount of confidence, Jack took the glass straight out of her hand and set it on the mantle beside them. She gulped the last of her juice as the fire beside her crackled but it wasn’t the reason she was feeling so warm. He placed his hand on her waist and pulled her closer and she went willingly, placing her arms on top of his broad shoulders. She relished in the tension curling in her stomach as his kind eyes melted her from the inside out.

“Phryne?” Jack’s voice was low as he leaned a bit closer, teasing himself with the adrenaline that came with their last Almost.

“Yes.” She agreed heartily, not caring in the least what his original question had been. She kissed him with all she had, sighing into his open mouth as his tongue began to explore hers. His hands pulled her in tightly, running along her back and she couldn't resist rubbing herself against him. To her delight, she felt him through his clothes and she moaned as his teeth tugged at her bottom lip in revenge. She knocked the fedora off his head in favor of running her fingers through his hair to muss his pomade. She heard him groan as he discovered that her favorite place to apply perfume was behind her ear. Spurred on to ravage her neck, Jack began to explore every piece of her exposed flesh. She was quite certain she would have to cover up with a scarf tomorrow but somehow, the potential only made her wetter.

“Jack, I want your mouth on every part of me.” She begged as he turned her inside out. After all, if his tongue could do that there...

Her statement seemed to stir him from his current task of tracing her collarbone with his tongue and he pulled away and looked at her. His eyes were dark with lust and his lips were swollen from kisses and stained slightly pink from her red lipstick. He looked downright disheveled for the first time in their partnership.

“Take me upstairs.” She couldn’t remember the last time she was so ready for a man. She knew she had never begged before one before. "Please." 

He nodded and she straightened his suit coat and ran her fingers through her hair to make themselves presentable enough to make it up the stairs. He picked up his forgotten hat, brushing off some imaginary dust before following her out of the parlor.  

“Mr. Butler? We’re retiring for the night.” She called towards the kitchen as she pushed him up the steps ahead of her.

“Very good, Miss.” He called back as if they had done it a thousand times before. She really needed to give that man a raise.

She managed to get them behind closed doors safely before Jack’s mind came back to him and he bolted for the front door.

“Now, where were we?” She asked him with a raise of her eyebrows.

“Right about...” Jack let his finger trace the path his tongue had made from her ear down her neck to her collarbone and stopped short where he had been interrupted, “here.”

“Oh, yes.” She moaned her approval as she shoved her velvet jacket off her shoulders to give him more room. His hands slid under her blouse and held her torso still as he reached the valley of her breasts. While he set about exploring, she tugged at every piece of fabric she could get her hands on, both his and hers, interrupting him from time to time until she had managed to undress them both.

Jack pressed her down onto the bed, pulling her thigh over his thin hips so he could absentmindedly caress the skin there. She watched in amazement as he wrapped his sweet lips around one of her nipples and let his fingers absentmindedly twist the other. Phryne nearly arched clean off the bed in pleasure.

“I swear to God, Jack. I can’t wait any longer.” She reached over and dug a condom out of the drawer. She very nearly threw it at him as she took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down.

“Ready?” He asked after slipping it on.

“Yes.” She whimpered and his merciful, loving eyes returned. Jack slid easily into her body and he closed his eyes and inhaled sharply.

“Christ, Phryne.” He murmured as she took him completely inside her. They stilled for a moment and she waited for him to open his eyes again.

“Jack, look at me.” She placed her hand on his jaw and he opened his eyes. She smiled at seeing him. He slowly started to move again and this time, Phryne’s head fell back against her pillow. Jack nipped at her chin lovingly before speeding up his thrusts and pulling her hips closer to him. The desperate cry that he evoked from her surprised her more than him, his own hips never changing their relentlessly steady pace as she faltered under his touch.

Unable to wait any longer for release, she was about to slide her hand between them but to her surprise, Jack beat her to the task and with the slightest touch of his rough fingers, she was gone. She came with a blinding intensity that had Jack turning purple as she spasmed around him. He called her name as he came, pulsing inside her until he collapsed, completely spent.

When he left the bed to clean up, Phryne felt his absence more deeply than she liked. She yearned for him to hurry up and return to her, and when he did, she couldn’t resist sprawling over him. She slid her leg between his and placed a hand on his chest before kissing his shoulder.

“Four months.” She whispered in his ear and he turned to look at her, placing his own hand over hers protectively, clutching it to his heart. “You’ve been hoarding that from me for the last four months.” She accused.

“Mm. Longer than that, if we’re being honest.” He winced, looking only semi-guilty about his lustful thoughts for her while he was still technically married.

“Do you have any idea what we could have been doing for the last 120 days?” She cried.

“Some creative variations of the last 30 minutes, I would imagine.” He said dryly and she shook her head.

“Cruel... is what you are. You’re a cruel, cruel man.” She laughed as he pinned her underneath him.

“Give me a few more minutes and then we can spend the next four months making up for lost time.” He promised, nudging her nose with his own and Phryne felt the fire catch in her eyes at just the idea.

“And after that?” She wondered.

“Oh, I reckon we'll both be dead by then." Jack said seriously.

"Cause of death?" She frowned.

"Too much sex.” He grinned as he pulled the blanket over their heads, refusing to come up for air again until he'd done everything in his power to keep his promise. 


	4. Swallow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leafingbookstea chose the word swallow and I had the start of this one stashed away in Notes for a rainy day. I loved the idea of turning a prompt with such blatant Phrack options on its head and doing something completely different. Buckle up, this one poured out and is way longer than anticipated.

“Jack! Shhhh! Jack!”

Her breathless sigh, and the naughty way she panted his name, had delighted his senses. It had only lasted a few seconds but he knew immediately that he would spend the rest of his life trying to evoke those sounds. He replayed her words over and over in the last few days, his mind filling in the missing imagery without his permission. Somehow, he just knew that those same breathless cracks in her voice could be conjured again by sucking on the soft juncture of her thigh, or would appear in her every moan as he took her against the nearest wall. The slight stutter that came when she had shushed him would be the same sound she would make as she shivered through a climax.

He was certain of it.

And now here they were again, sitting in her window with the case behind them, and she was watching him in rapt attention as he spoke about his childhood. Her petite arms were wrapped around her legs like a small child and he felt like a king, if only because she was looking at him like one.

“I love when you talk about yourself.” She finished the last of her drink as he leaned back against the window.

“A few more of these and I’ll lose the ability to talk altogether.” He said as he wiggled the empty glass in his hand before setting it down on the tray.

“I don't think it’s just the cocktail. You’ve let your guard down these past few days.” She observed. “Popping forbidden champagne in my boudoir late at night, hanging off a pier, swimming at the beach. I like this new side of you, Jack.”

“All in the line of duty.” He smirked, knowing better.

“Mmhm.” She wasn’t buying it. “The last time you said that, you were kissing me.” She reminded him.

“You were kissing me too.” He volleyed.

Jack could have sworn she had moved closer, although he didn’t know how it was possible given her position on the window seat.

“If this is you being professional, I just might have to submit an application to City South.” She whispered.

Jack groaned dramatically at just the suggestion.

“Are you trying to kill me?” He murmured as he finally realized that he was the one who had been moving closer to her.

“You tell me, Detective Inspec...” He watched her taunting drip from her red lips before he gave in and tried to kiss some sense into her. It was Phryne, however, who grinned in victory against his mouth before their tongues continued the duel their words could no longer sustain.

Phryne managed to move up onto her knees, pressing herself into his body, which gave Jack an idea. He slid an arm across her back and dipped her, catching her torso in his arms as she fell into his lap. She let out a surprised squeal against his mouth that turned into a deep, honest laugh as she threw her head backwards and Jack had a new sound to pursue for the rest of his life.

He knew he must have a stupid grin on his face, but he couldn't help it, nor did he want to.

Phryne took a deep breath as she stopped laughing. She didn’t bother moving, looking up at him from her position in his arms. Her small hand came up and rested on his chest.

“How far do you want this to go, Jack?” She asked, her eyes lit with joy, but clouded with lust. “I keep a very full house.” She reminded him.

Jack considered their options.

“Come home with me.” He offered.

Phryne sat up in surprise at his offer.

“Too soon?” He asked, only half-joking.

“I didn’t realize you had a home. I just assumed you lived at the station.” She was buying time to recover from his question and they both knew it.

“Well, it’s close enough to walk there.” He defended as his hand found the small of her back. “But we’ll have the place to ourselves.”

Phryne smiled at the thought of seeing Jack’s home at last. He could practically see the curiosity oozing out of her.

“Give me a head start to pack?” She smiled and Jack felt his heart skip a beat at the realization that she would need to gather a bag.

Because she was coming home with him.

For sex.

“As always.” He replied on autopilot, swallowing hard. Her phrase mirrored their night at the Imperial but this time, they would get their resolution.

“I’ll meet you back here?” She said as she glanced down at his tie and straightened it for him.

“I’ll be here.” He nodded, knowing he couldn't move if he tried.

OOOOO

Was this really happening? On a Sunday afternoon, daylight streaming through the car windows, he was taking her back to his place?

He had thought of more than a few scenarios in which their resolve would crumble but this was not one of them.

They pulled up to the side of the house and Phryne paused before getting out of the car.

“You know, I would be perfectly content just spending time with you, if you wanted to take things slow.” Phryne offered.

Jack just shot her an incredulous look and she pressed her lips together to keep from laughing.

“Alright. Sex until morning it is then.” She purred as he opened the car door.

He didn't know which idea worried him more.

He headed around the front of the car to open her door, but she was already out and walking up the sidewalk to his door.

“Oh, look at this adorable house!” Phryne grinned as she looked up at it.

He unlocked the door for her and waved her in. She took one step into the kitchen and smiled. He glanced over at her briefly to assess her reaction before looking away cowardly again. She headed into the parlor and sighed.

“Jack, it’s perfect!” She exclaimed back to him. “No wonder you keep it to yourself.” She added as he joined her.

“It’s a house.” He shrugged, not caring one way or the other for his small corner of the world. He enjoyed peace and quiet, when he could get it, but he was just as addicted to the thrill of the chase as she was, and he would much rather be at the office than here almost any day of the week.

“So your heart lives at the station after all.” She guessed so accurately that Jack had to wonder if he’d spoken out loud.

“I guess so.” The truth was, lately he had missed being away from her when he was at home. He associated work with getting to see her, and that made going to the office an incredibly easy task.

“Thank you for bringing me here.” She smiled as she wrapped her arm around his. “I’ve always wondered what your home looked like.”

“But you never asked?” Jack wondered out loud.

“I never ask about the things you don’t mention. I might... open some doors for you to share,” she phrased delicately, “if and when you want to,” she added, "but I never push.” She rambled as he stared her down.

Jack realized that was true. She had never asked about his marriage, or what happened to warrant their separation or divorce. She had never shown up here, when he knew she probably figured out his address ages ago. The only time she had ever really refused to take his direction had been when Foyle had been involved and who would listen in that situation?

“You are quite extraordinary, Miss Fisher.” He complimented her.

“I feel quite the same way about you, Jack.” She assured him, placing her hand in his chest lightly and reminding him why they were here.

“Right.” He stirred abruptly from his thoughts. “Let me show you the bedroom.” Jack was quickly realizing he hadn't had sex in over three years and it had been decades since he’d had a new partner. He had no idea how to do this, at least, not her way, whatever way that might be.

Phryne followed him around the corner and into his bedroom. It was clear that the housekeeper had been by while they had been to the beach and he had never been so grateful for the service as he was when he saw the clean, pressed sheets.

“We meet at last.” She smiled as she touched the headboard. When she turned around to face Jack again, her eyes were dark. She sauntered over towards him. “You know, this bed and I have been trying to get together for months.”

“Have you?” He commented, knowing full well she wasn’t talking about the bed. “What stopped you?”

“Well, we decided that anything worth doing was worth doing right.” She murmured against his lips as she unbuttoned his waistcoat. “Sometimes, that requires patience. Even when it’s painful.”

She was torturing him now, never fully touching him, never getting close enough to be touched.

“Phryne, be kind. It’s been three years.” He groaned as she removed his tie.

“That’s why I’m going slowly. I’m letting you adjust. I know it must be quite unnerving for you.” Phryne replied and he couldn’t tell through his haze if she was teasing or not.

“Phryne.” Jack looked her square in the eye. “It’s been three years.” He said more definitively this time.

“Oh.” She smiled mischievously. “Well then, I’ve already taken care of the particulars so...” she opened her arms, “I’m all yours.”

Her statement simultaneously let him breathe and stole his breath. He couldn’t help but wonder if she meant it, at least for longer than tonight. It was probably something he should clarify with her but it wouldn't changed his mind. He needed her, and for the first time in his life, that was enough.

He undressed her and had her on the bed as quickly as he could manage, but her body was providing the most welcome distraction from his original goal. He wanted to inspect and learn every piece of her and it stole his attention, but judging from the sighs Phryne was emitting, she didn’t mind his detours.

He allowed himself a few tentative swipes of his tongue along her damp flesh to whet his appetite before taking her in his mouth. Her fingers in his hair and her muscles underneath his hands were more than enough to guide his actions and it wasn’t long before he managed to find just the right combination of moves to elicit the same breathless, shuddering moans he had heard in Queenscliff.

Just as he’d always imagined she would, Phryne began panting his name over and over in a sweet, ecstatic rhythm that took her straight over the edge and flooded his tongue with the rich, ambrosial taste of her. Jack, being the greedy soul that he was, didn’t cease until she tugged at his shoulders.

“Come here.” She begged and when he was eye to eye with her once more, she kissed him. An unsolicited groan spilled from his chest as he realized she could taste herself on his tongue.

“Phryne…” He murmured, aching for her.  

“Yes.” She purred, spreading her legs and welcoming him gladly. She watched his face as he slowly buried himself within her, his eyes fluttering shut in relief. “Oh Jack.” She hummed. “You’re divine.”

He nuzzled his nose against her neck as he slowly began to move. It took a few moments to find their rhythm, both of them distracted by weight of what was occurring, but eventually, their thoughts gave way to the pure, physical chemistry being ignited between them.

“Jack.” Phryne whispered, beckoning him to her and he pressed his forehead lovingly against hers. As their eyes closed, they finally surrendered to each other, shaking and shivering as their worlds collided.

Jack slipped from her but never fully left her embrace, letting her cling to him until he settled next to her and she could curl up under his arm.

“I wasn’t expecting…” Phryne paused and he glanced down to see her swallow hard, overwhelmed by the sheer force of the unexpected intimacy. “That.” She finished, unable to name it.

“I know.” He agreed, slightly overwhelmed himself. Of course, he’d suspected that once his divorce cleared, he’d find himself feeling more for her than what he’d been letting himself feel previously. But to see her so open and raw before him, made him realize just how serious things had become, long before ever being spoken.

“Earlier today, when you said that I’ve let my guard down, you were right.” Jack spoke quietly, unsure of how she would process his thoughts. “I didn’t realize how much until today.”

“Does that frighten you?” She asked, sitting up so she could face him.

“A little.” He confessed, propping himself up against his headboard. “My life used to be very segmented: detective, soldier, husband…” he listed, “It started as a coping mechanism. I didn’t want Rosie to see the damage the war had caused and she didn’t want me to discuss murders over the dinner table. Slowly, it just became habit. Every time I walked through a door, I changed roles.”

“Sounds exhausting.” She murmured.

“It was.” He nodded. “But then you came along and barreled through all those walls like a freight train.”

“A _charming_ freight train.” She corrected with a nudge.

“Mm.” He acquiesced with a smile. “And now, we do some of our best case work at your dinner table, and you flirt with me over dead bodies, and I kiss you undercover. We've seen each other damaged and yet, it still just...works." He marveled, unable to explain it. "So while it does scare me from time to time, there's no one else I'd want breaking down my walls." It was the closest thing to a declaration of love that she was going to get today and while he didn’t regret saying it, Jack couldn’t help but wonder what she was thinking. “Does that frighten you?” He asked, stealing her question.

"Jack, you silly man." She sighed and shook her head as she settled in his lap. He draped his arms leisurely around her waist. "You broke down just as many walls for me as I did for you." She informed him. "I wouldn't be here right now if that weren't true." She pointed out. "So I am definitely not going anywhere now that I've finally worn you down." 

"No?" He smiled. 

She shook her head slowly as she leaned in to kiss him softly. 

"I'm afraid you're stuck with me, Inspector." She whispered against his lips, her voice so soft and sinfully tempting that it stirred his body from it's slumber.

And he added the sound to his ever-growing list.


	5. Tradition and Dapper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 221A_brina chose the words tradition and dapper.

Phryne knew as soon as she saw him that they wouldn’t be making it to the theatre on time.

He had entered her bedroom while she was still finishing her makeup and she had glanced in the mirror to acknowledge she was running late but she paused with her lipstick hovering in front of her face as she raked her eyes over his reflection. He looked so dapper and traditional in his formal tuxedo that every bone in her body was screaming to undo him.

She couldn't help it. It was a reflex.

“Something wrong?” He asked as he tugged at his sleeves self-consciously, not accustomed to the formal wear.

She finished putting her lipstick on and spun around to face him.

“I forgot how handsome you look in a tuxedo.” She murmured. He blushed just a bit as she walked over to her bedroom door and locked it.

“What are you…? Phryne.” Jack scolded as she took his hat from his hands and threw it aside.

“Do you remember the first time you quoted Shakespeare for me, after Ruddigore?” She asked as her hands worked on undoing his pants.

“I recall that, yes.” Jack was looking confused and Phryne ran her hands along his backside and helped Jack step out of his pants

“Do it again.”

“Why?” He asked.

“Because, I wanted to do this then and I couldn’t.” She commanded as she got on her knees and began running the tip of her tongue in slow circles around the head of his rapidly hardening cock.

Never one to argue with that logic, Jack gave in.

“Age cannot wither her,” Jack began in that beautiful, rough voice she had fantasized about for years, “nor custom stale her infinite variety. Other women cloy the appetites they feed, but she makes hungry where most she…” Jack fell back against the dresser with a thump as she took him to the back of her throat, “satisfies.” He moaned and Phryne felt herself go weak in the spine.  Jack tightened his grip on her shoulder as his other hand found the back of her head. "For vilest things become themselves in her, that the holy priests...mmm," he bit his lip, "bless her when she is riggish." She smirked around him and Jack lost the will to continue outside of some well-placed sighs and moans. 

She was doing some of her best work when a ragged groan tore through Jack and stole her attention. He had looked down and noticed the red, wax circles her lipstick was leaving on his skin.

She was claiming him as hers.

"Jesus Christ, Phryne." He hissed. 

"Mine." She said before setting back to work even harder than before.

“You did know, how much you were my conqueror.” Jack exhaled, right on the edge of combusting for her.

She hummed her agreement and that was all it took. He shattered inside her and she drank him in, never letting go until he slipped from her himself.

When he could manage it, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to her as she stood up. She accepted it gratefully as she fixed her smudged lipstick in the mirror and he got dressed again.

“We’re going to be late.” She commented as if the entire distraction hadn't been her fault. 

“We have a private box. We won't be disturbing anyone by arriving a few minutes late.” He reminded her in a far too casual manner.

Phryne turned around to see what this new man had done with her rule-abiding Inspector.

“And if I have my way, you’re not going to see the production at all.” Jack murmured darkly as he reached his hand out to stroke her hip.

“Oh.” Phryne sighed. The image of his fingers straying in a public setting was too delicious for words. “Then we’d better hurry.” She said as she clutched her shawl around her tighter.

“After you, Miss Fisher.” He gestured to the door.

“No, no. After _you_ , Inspector.” She grinned saucily as she passed him.


	6. Deliquesce and Sapphire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SuiGeneris221B chose the words “Deliquesce” and “Sapphire”.

"Here!” Jack cried as he tossed her his keys. He was too busy trying to hold his trench over them to do it himself. Phryne managed to unlock the door quickly and they both rushed inside.

“Oh my.” Phryne sighed as she finally stopped to breathe. “I haven’t seen rain like that since I left England.”

“Perfect timing too. The streets are about to flood.” Jack commented, shaking off his coat before hanging it up. “You should call and let them know where you are while we still have a phone line. I’ll go get us some towels.” Jack left her dripping in the entryway as Phryne phoned Mr. Butler to let him know she was safely stowed away at Jack’s.

“Aside from dry clothes, would you care for a bath, a fire, or a whiskey?” He asked as he handed her a towel and noticed how hard her teeth were chattering.

“Don't take this the wrong way, Jack but I don’t think we have quite the same taste in fashion.” She pointed out as she blotted her neck with the towel.

“Nonsense.” Jack scoffed, examining her blouse and skirt. “I happen to know that you love trousers. And if your gaze is any indication, you’ve been admiring mine for quite some time.” He widened his eyes playfully before leisurely strolling away, leaving Phryne sputtering in his wake.

“Jack Robinson!” She called after him, water droplets punctuating her footsteps as she unapologetically dripped her way into his bedroom. “You’d better not start something that you aren’t willing to fini…” She sighed, not bothering to finish her statement when he had his head in a drawer, completely oblivious to her.

His bedroom walls, painted a light blue, looked almost grey in the cloudy light and it made Phryne feel like she were in a misty cloud herself. The bed standing in the center of the room was flawlessly made with a doona stretched cleanly over top and Phryne noted, not for the first time, that Jack had picked up some fastidious habits while in the army.

“They’ll be big but they’ll have to do.” He half-apologized, his head emerging from the cedar drawer. He held out a pair of silk sapphire pajamas that she assumed had been a gift from Rosie. She couldn’t see him buying such a lovely pair for himself.

“Jack?” She won his attention with the singular syllable and she couldn’t help but shiver at his obedience. “I don't want the dry clothes.” She informed him as she closed the distance between them and removed the pajamas from his hands.

Jack’s face flickered with confusion briefly before he raised an eyebrow at her panther-like prowl towards him.

“Well, you can’t stay in those, you’ll catch your death.” He replied, gamely playing along.

“Mm. And what would you recommend instead?” She asked as she slowly unbuttoned his suit coat.

“I think we can come up with a solution.” He licked his lips before reaching out to unbutton her skirt but Phryne stepped back out of his reach. She reached down and slowly stripped herself of the skirt before unbuttoning her wet blouse and lifting it over her head.

Jack watched on, enraptured by her movements. He did an admirable job keeping his hands to himself, only unbuttoning his waistcoat as he watched her. He was a natural born observer and she loved to be watched. Together, it made for a fantastic tension.

“You are…” he murmured as she stepped forward into his embrace, “freezing.” He finished, wrapping his arms around her clammy body.

“Warm me up." She countered as a thunderclap rattled the room.

He kissed her once, filling her with anticipation before breaking away to remove his own soaked clothes. He took his time and she wondered if it was intentional or if she was just that impatient. Probably both.

“Hypothermic over here.” She reminded him and he smiled slowly, unrushed.

Definitely intentional.

He nodded towards the bed as he undid his cuffs and her stomach flipped at the sight. There was something so quietly commanding about his presence when he wanted there to be. She crawled under the blankets and slid a finger over her clitoris as she watched him unbutton his shirt.

When he finally came to bed, he discovered her appetency had only been growing as she lazily toyed with herself.

“We have unexpectedly found ourselves with the whole afternoon alone. No murders, no paperwork, no luncheons.” He murmured as he kissed her neck. “Hours to lay here together uninterrupted…” she sighed as his thumb found a hard nipple and gently rolled it. “And you still can't wait long enough for me to undress and get to bed.”

“I can’t help it. You affect me wildly, Jack.” She assured him.

“Do I?” He confirmed before his warm mouth replaced his fingers, sending heat radiating through her cold body.

“Yes.” She exhaled.

“Mm.” He hummed against her. He moved to her other breast and continued his delicious torment.

“You force me to slow down and appreciate little things, like the way you remove your cuff links, or the way your hair curls when it’s wet.” She murmured, running her hand through his damp hair. “And those little things, in turn, make me even crazier for you.” She panted as Jack moved lower. Her body was throbbing for him but he refused to be hurried. “Until I think I could combust from just the feeling of your lips on my skin.”

“Am I to understand you’d like some release?” Jack asked as he reached for the condom on the bedside table.

“Yes.” She whimpered.

“Well then, it’s yours for the taking.” He kissed her and she turned them over so she was on top and lowered herself over top of him. She practically panted with relief as she began to move her hips.

Jack ran his hands over her thighs encouragingly, watching her enjoy herself.

“I must admit, I love watching you lose control.” Jack confessed, his breathing getting sharper as their thrusts hit a familiar rhythm. “The flush of your skin, the smell of your sweat.”

“Yes.” She hummed.

“The way your wet body slides around mine, over and over until you can't bear it anymore.”

Phryne bent over him, changing their angle and they both moaned at the new friction as their hips sped up even faster.

“Oh, god. Right there.” She clenched tighter around him.

“That’s it, darling. Oh, yes, fuck me, Phryne.” Jack growled softly, knowing exactly what would set her off. “Hard and fast." 

“Yes.” She cried, her body picking up speed at his filthy talk.

“Take it. Take what you want. It’s yours.” He gritted his teeth.

“Fuck, Jack.” She cried out, his words destroying her as he took control while somehow still giving her the reins.

“Oh, yes! Phryne!” He cried, close to the edge.

“Yes! Yes! OH!” She exploded over top of him, coming so hard that she lost feeling in her lips as her overwrought nerves gave out under the pressure. He called her name as he shattered beneath her, pulsing madly within her as she came down from her high.

She collapsed next to him and they both deliquesced into the mattress, completely spent.

"Still cold?" He murmured and she giggled and shook her head. "Good."


	7. Languid

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sarahtoo chose the word languid.

Jack ran his lips across the nape of her neck. 

“Do you have any idea what it feels like to wake up to a sight like this and have to get out of bed and go to work?” He inquired quietly. 

“No.” She smirked lazily, wanting to drive him crazy with the fact that she could lay here all day if she chose to do so. “You know you could phone and tell them you're sick.”

“No one would believe me.”

“So?” She ran her hand over his perfect thigh. “Stay, Jack. Just this once. Stay and make love to me over and over again until the sun sets.” 

“And what of Mr. Butler and Mrs. Collins?” He inquired. 

“They’ll find something to occupy their time.” 

He lifted her knee and entered her slowly, causing her to let out a soft groan of pleasure. She reached back to touch his unkempt hair in approval. She’d never had him this way before and it made her so very wet to think that he’d taken the liberty all on his own. 

“Touch me, Jack.” She begged and his hand on her knee traveled upwards to pleasure her even as he stroked snugly inside her. His tongue flicked against the shell of her ear and she shivered. 

“I love being inside you.” He whispered as she rocked herself back against him deeper. “So soft, so smooth.” 

“Oh.” She sighed and touched her own breasts. 

“I never want to leave.” 

“No.” She concurred as she felt her soft orgasm building slowly in her belly. 

“Phryne…” He whispered her name and her body began to quake as a slow, rippling orgasm radiated from her core outward. Jack somehow understood what was happening and continued his devastatingly slow pace, stretching her pleasure for what felt like days but was probably only a matter of minutes. 

When the aftershocks finally ceased, Phryne realized that Jack was still unsatisfied as he pulled out of her body gingerly.

She turned around to face him and was met with his dark eyes. She touched his rough, unshaven jaw in concern.

“No protection.” He murmured kindly. 

She hadn’t expected him to come to her last night. In her early morning haze, it hadn’t even occurred to her that her diaphragm was still sitting safely in its case on her table.

“Let me…”

“No.” He shook his head. “I really am going to be late. Besides, an exquisitely tortured body goes well with an exquisitely tortured mind.” He smirked as he touched her thigh gently. “If I can't be with you in bed all day, I want to be thinking of you in bed all day.” 

Phryne was certain she would have climaxed from his statement if she hadn't just done so.

He was going to spend the entire day half-hard and aching for her as he sat behind his desk so that when he came home, he could have her properly.

“What time will you be home?” She asked as he got out of bed. The word fell from her mouth before she realized he didn't actually live there. 

“Around 6, I should imagine.” He answered, not recognizing her assumption with his lust-laden brain. 

Phryne closed her eyes. 

It was going to be the longest day of her life.

 

 


	8. Quickening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You’ll notice these are going to be shorter from here on out as the pre-written ones are now gone. Also, remember when I said I was broadening my fetish horizons in Chapter 3? I lied. TIE FIC FOR EVERYONE. *sprinkles tie-shaped confetti down on your heads* PS: Thanks to Sunsetdreamer for being the best/worst editor when I’m sick and can’t seem to read, let alone edit.
> 
> Whopooh chose the word quickening.

 

 

Jack’s heart began to race and a small sheen of perspiration broke out on his forehead. He was certain that he was blushing.

She was undoing his tie but he couldn’t look down, couldn’t stop her, couldn’t look anywhere but those striking blue eyes. 

“If you really want a Roman soldier,” he paused as she stared longingly at his lips, “then I’ll take it from here.” 

He needed to get her out of the room, needed a chance to breathe. He’d come straight from the courthouse to this and his mind and heart were shorting out at the dissonance of his current emotions and the rationality that normally guided him. 

Phryne simply stared at him and no matter how many times he swallowed, Jack’s throat wouldn’t seem to clear. 

“And what if what I really want is Jack Robinson?” She inquired so quietly that he nearly thought he’d misheard her. She removed her helmet and looked up at him.  Her eyes had softened and he could tell that she was serious. When she touched his chest lightly, he felt all of his walls crumble like Jericho. 

But she didn’t move closer. She was leaving it up to him. 

And that was the straw that finally broke Jack Robinson’s back. 

He pulled her forward and kissed her desperately. He wanted to drown in her. They shed their clothes as easily as their inhibitions and Phryne crawled backwards onto the bed, pulling him down over top of her. He stared down into her crystalline blue eyes that were so full of yearning for him and he touched her cheek lovingly.

If this never happened again, he wanted to remember every second of it.

She turned her head to kiss his palm, reassuring him somehow and he closed his eyes for a moment.

“Kiss me, Jack.” She whispered and he followed her commands, getting swept up in the taste of her once more. He kissed her until she was breathless and then he let himself explore, brushing his lips down her neck and across the skin of her collarbone.   


Phryne’s mouth fell open in silent pleasure as she anticipated his mouth reaching her breasts but he stopped short. She had hooked her legs around his waist and her warm, wet heat radiating against him had stolen his attention. 

She seemed to realize why he had stopped and she ran a hand down his spine and back up again, spurring him on to continue.

He rubbed himself against her and her body pebbled under his warm sigh of relief. He captured her nipple with his mouth and sucked on her soft flesh. She began to pant as her hands grasped at the back of his head tightly.

Unable to resist the siren’s call emanating from between her legs, he slipped his fingers between them and massaged her gently. A surprised cry was wrenched from her and he continued his actions, wanting more. 

Her hips began to move and she bit her lip in denial, trying to stave off the eventuality he was seeking for her. He let one finger slip inside her, and then another as his thumb took over circling her clitoris and his cock strained in jealousy against her thigh.

She looked like her painting come to life beneath him as her back began to arch and her moans crescendoed until she finally broke around him.

He helped her come down gently before slipping out of her and reaching for the condom she had secured earlier. He placed it on carefully and returned over top of her. He pulled her thigh over him, caressing it as his hand moved over her.

She pulled him down by his neck and kissed him, handing him the permission to do whatever he wanted. What he wanted was to listen to her sighs in his ear as he moved within her.

He pushed into her slowly, more for his sake than her own, and he groaned at feeling the full way she covered him. Phryne matched his rhythm, quickening with every thrust. And with every attempt to leave her, she’d clench tightly around him, pulling his sanity from him until he had no choice but to bury himself inside her and come apart at the seams. 

The lingering scent of perfume on her neck caught his delirious attention before he fell beside her, completely spent. 

Phryne’s hand settled over his heart.

“Are you going to make it?” She asked and he knew that she meant so much more than physically. 

“I think so.” He replied, unwilling to confirm one way or the other.

After all, his actual answer would depend on her.


	9. Evergreen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A tiny little palate cleanser appeared for today. Enjoy!
> 
> Hypatia200 chose Evergreen.

 

Why did he love her?

It wasn’t the first time the question had kept her up at night, but lying here beside him she found the question renewed.

Jack didn't love blindly; he was first in line to call her out for her reckless troublemaking, usually accompanied by that resigned sigh that he had perfected whenever she got particularly feisty. But he was also first in line to wrap his arms around her when her strong facade faltered. On days when she had crumbled to the ground with grief, panicked behind closed doors, or lost the will to fight, he was always the one standing beside her, close enough to touch. Through whatever came her way, he was evergreen, as dependable as the sun or the moon.

No, she changed her mind,  _ she _ was the sun. She burned hot and bright, was composed of mostly chaos and color, and she could easily cause permanent damage if she were admired for too long.

But if she was the sun, Jack was the moon. He quietly reflected her light but muted it, turning it into a cool, shimmery silver that captured the inherent beauty of stillness. He mellowed her, calmed her, brought her back down to earth.

As if he could sense her thoughts, Jack’s arm tightened instinctively around her waist. His steady breathing swirled against the back of her neck and she couldn’t help but match her own breath to it. Their flesh tinged orange from the dying fire at their bedside and Phryne had never felt more warm. Somehow, even in his sleep, Jack managed to calm her wild mind.


	10. Rumor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These will be shorter because I’m writing them the night before, she said. And the muse laughed and laughed…
> 
> OOOOO
> 
> Phoenix_Mary chose the word rumor.

“Should they whisper false of you, never trouble to deny. Should the words they say be true, weep and storm and swear they lie!”

-Dorothy Parker

OOOOO 

There had always been rumors surrounding Detective Inspector Jack Robinson. 

He had gotten his promotion because he was married to the boss’s daughter. 

He’d set up his ex-father in law as revenge, or because he’d wanted the Deputy Commissioner’s job. 

He’d left his wife after finding her in the arms of wealthy banker. Or was it a barrister? He couldn’t quite remember. But Rosie had  _ definitely _ left him because of his love affair with the Honourable Miss Fisher. After all, it was well known that Jack had been Miss Fisher’s kept man since the day they met. 

So it shouldn’t have surprised him when Phryne came storming back into his kitchen one Sunday morning after fetching the newspaper and thrust the gossip pages under his nose. 

_ Is the Honourable Miss Fisher Secretly Engaged? _

But Jack sprayed tea all over his toast just the same. 

“And who’s the poor sod I should send my regards to?” He coughed as he reached for a towel to clean up the mess. 

“Not you.” She baited him pointedly. 

“Really?” He frowned, foregoing the cleanup to pull the paper closer to investigate. 

“Oh, of course it’s you!” She cried. 

Jack pouted slightly at being toyed with, and pushed the paper away disappointedly.

“It’s just gossip, Phryne. It will be gone by tomorrow.” He waved it off.

“They have a photo of me helping Dot plan her wedding! They think it’s ours!” 

“It doesn’t actually state…”

“Putting a question mark at the end of a headline does not make it acceptable journalism!” She seethed. “Ugh, this is all your fault.” She shook her head as she continued her pacing. “I never could have been accused of this before I met you.” 

“Accused of what precisely? Being secretly engaged to a man you’ve already committed to?”

“Committed, excellent choice of words.” She scoffed. “I must have been crazy to think that we could avoid this subject forever. And don’t you dare try to tell me that you don’t want to marry me. I know that you do.” She turned on her heel and continued pacing.

“I really don’t.” He shook his head emphatically. “I can’t imagine why that is...” Jack muttered under his breath, the very thought of marriage turning the love of his life into a raving lunatic.

She sighed as she collapsed in the chair beside him, putting her hands over her eyes, exhausted by her own panic. 

“Phryne, you normally laugh about things like this.” He reminded her as he held up the paper briefly. “Why is this so different?” 

“Because. It is.” She replied, massaging the bridge of her nose. “This is just one more thing that I can’t give you.” She murmured.

“Excuse me?” He begged, although he heard it quite plainly. 

She sighed. 

“Your job requires certain things from you, Jack, certain standards that you have to uphold. We both know that I have a tendency to make things more difficult for you there but we made our boundaries and I’d like to think I accepted them gracefully.” 

“You did.” He agreed, reaching out for her hand. They’d never be able to live together, but they were both independent souls and they were making do just fine under the circumstances, or so he thought. 

“But now, I’m spending my days surrounded by people gushing about marriage. It means so much to them and I realized that I denied you that without so much as a conversation.” She looked down at their hands. “And I don’t want you to have to make concessions to be with me, Jack. I want you to have everything you’ve ever wanted.” 

“Phryne, listen to me very carefully.” He leaned in closer. “When I fell in love with you, it was with all of you.” He touched her cheek. “You, with all your recklessness, and your adventurous spirit, and your generous heart.” He stared into her eyes. “I promise you, no concessions were made.” He assured her. 

“Promise?” She fairly whimpered. 

“Yes.” 

“And if that changes?”

“Then you’ll be the first to know.” He said naturally.

She glanced over at the paper once more. 

“Eyes front, Miss Fisher.” He teased, demanding her attention. She turned to smile at him and he captured her mouth in a sweet kiss. 

But the kiss didn't stay sweet for long.

She hoisted herself up on his kitchen table and sent the paper and his breakfast clattering to the floor.

“I’ll make you more later.” She panted against his lips as he yanked on her sash, pulling her silk robe open and revealing her perfectly sculpted body to him like a present.

“Mm-mm,” he shook his head predatorily, “I‘m hungry now.” He lowered her down onto the table, settled himself back in his chair, and licked his lips before diving into his very favorite meal.


	11. Fingerprint

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A conclusion to Chapter 7's Languid. 
> 
> Deedeeinfj chose the word fingerprint.

She was waiting at the top of the stairs when he walked in.

One sight of him and she instantly felt like she was his prey. She'd never seen him scale the staircase that quickly. 

“I need you right now.” Jack demanded quietly as he pulled her to the bedroom by her elbow and slammed the door behind them. “I can’t wait another second.”

“Yes.” She agreed as he unbuttoned his trousers and pulled his rock hard erection out. “I’m ready for you. I’ve been thinking about this moment all day.” She was naked under her dress, family planner firmly in place. She'd been pacing for the last thirty minutes. 

He pressed her against the nearest wall and groaned as he slipped easily inside her drenched walls.

He murmured an expletive as he craned his neck in ecstasy. He began to pump inside her, barely taking the time to kiss or touch her, just frantically needing a mind-bending release as fast as he could get it. 

Phryne hooked her arms under his and clutched onto his shoulders, holding him tightly to her. The beads of her dress rattled against his suit coat as he lost himself inside her.

“Oh god yes!” She cried as he took her as deeply as he could. She was certain she would leave purple fingerprints on his body as evidence of their lack of control but they had been thinking of nothing else for the last twelve hours. “Oh, Jack! Yes! Yes!” She begged. When she felt like her sanity couldn’t be stretched any more tautly, he let out a yell and broke against her like a wave. His climax triggered her own and she murmured sweet nothings of relief in his ear as she slowly floated back down to earth.

“Fuck, Phryne.” He murmured as he glanced down and realized just how desperate they had been for one another. Aside from his undone pants, he was still fully dressed.

“You just did.” She grinned as she captured his earlobe between her teeth.


	12. Promotion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dispatch22705 chose the word promotion.

Phryne analyzed her Buffalo Bill pin carefully. She had plans to place it, as well as the clipped photo of them from the gossip pages, in her box with her other collected Jack souvenirs. But this one in particular had capture her devotion.

In giving her a promotion, Jack had given her a cherished piece of him and it meant more to her than anything else he could have done. Of course, he’d been forced to fire her eventually, but for a few shining moments, she’d been his equal in the eyes of the law and his thoughtfulness would never stop filling her with joy.

This case had been, to steal a tennis pun, a series of volleys between them. He had stolen her heart with his pin and then turned around and helped Angela Lombard out of her dress. 

Wildly jealous of Angela Lombard, she sighed. This is what he had reduced her to.

But she had been particularly vengeful the next day as she sat on his desk, letting her skirt show off far more of her leg than she normally allowed in his office (that had also been a theme during this case) and she had loved watching him twitch uncomfortably in her peripheral view. But never one to take anything lying down, he’d taken out that wretched spider and she’d been forced to concede momentarily.

But she was not about to lose the war.

“Detective Robinson is here, Miss.” Mr. Butler informed her quietly.

“Send him up, please.” She requested and Mr. Butler, bless him, almost seemed to smirk.

So her plan was thinly veiled, but it was a plan all the same.

“The Inspector, Miss.” He escorted Jack inside and left him standing awkwardly in the doorway.

Phryne could see immediately that every piece of armor Jack possessed was on. Still he was in her bedroom and she was wearing nothing but a silk robe. Things could be worse.

“Jack, come in. What can I do for you?” She asked.

“Sorry to interrupt your evening, Miss Fisher, but I thought you might want this back.” Jack replied too seriously for his task. He held up an evidence bag that held her diaphragm inside.

“Thank you but I’ve already procured another.” She said as she stood up to take the bag and promptly dropped it in the bin beside her dressing table. “I’ll have that thing nowhere near... me,” she improvised, “ever again.”

Her visible shudder made him smile against his better judgment and she saw him try to fight it. But, in glancing away from her, something else caught his attention. She looked over her shoulder and noticed why he was staring. He’d found his trinkets laid out beside her.

“Oh. Yes. I’m adding the newest souvenirs to my collection.” She smiled softly.

“You have a collection?” His comment was more curious than embarrassed but she felt exposed under the gaze he now returned to her. Despite the fact that his eyes were the only part of him that she could consistently read, she wasn’t quite sure what he was thinking.

He made his way over to the box and carefully investigated.

“Yes. I mean, just a few things.” She confessed as she looked down at the things as well. “Tickets from Ruddigore and the Scenic Railway, the pins you’ve given me, your football scarf…” She paused as she realized he was now standing as close to her as he could get. She looked up to see his eyes shining with happiness.

“And where have you put the heart I gave you?” He asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

“Here.” She replied, touching her chest. “I needed it to replace the one you stole from me.”

Jack smiled widely before pulling her close and kissing her. Phryne didn't know if and when he would come to his senses so she took everything he gave her greedily.

When he finally pulled away, his hair was mussed and her lips were swollen.

“Do you have this new internal device on hand?” Jack asked hopefully.

“Yes.” The word rushed out of her.

“Put it in.” He commanded and Phryne felt herself go weak at the knees.

She moved her box of items to her dressing table and exchanged it for the clamshell case lying there.

Jack was watching her every movement with scorching eyes and she’d never felt more desired in her life.

“Get undressed.” She begged him, not wanting to waste any time when she returned. 

“Hurry.” He replied as she left him alone.

And she did.

When she returned, he was in the midst of stepping out of his trousers.

“Now this is a sight.” She smirked as she took in his firm backside for the first time.

He tossed a glance over his shoulder as she removed her robe, revealing herself to him before he could fully turn around.

He stood up and sighed at the sight she made before striding across the room, completely at ease with their nakedness.

A grown man, indeed, she thought to herself. 

“You are stunning.” He replied as he ran a hand over her arm and she shivered at his touch. 

“Take me to bed, Jack Robinson.” She whispered, swinging her arms over his neck before breaking out in a wide grin at finally getting to say it aloud.

“My pleasure.” He smiled at her glee as he lowered them to her mattress. He looked at her lying underneath him for just a moment before changing his mind and rolling her on top of him.

“Much better.” He decided as he sat up to kiss her on more equal terms. She clutched her arms a little tighter around his neck and she lowered herself onto him slowly.

“Oh yes.” She agreed. His hands were firmly on her hips and thighs and she felt impossibly close to him. She kissed him slowly, her tongue teasing his as he filled her in every way. Her fingers wove through the small hairs at the back of his head and she felt goosebumps break out under her fingertips.

His mouth strayed to her neck and breasts before she pushed him lightly back down to the pillows so she could move over him horizontally. She placed her hands on either side of his head and kissed him as he thrust into her from below. She gasped into his mouth.

“Again.” She sighed and he happily complied. “Yes.” She moaned as her hips began to move entirely on their own accord, over and over again until Jack’s fingers finally slipped between them and she was beside herself with pleasure. She faintly heard Jack groan out her name as he came with her.

“Oh my god.” She murmured as she sank onto his chest, unable to move. "You're incredible." She praised. 

“Hold on, before we get too comfortable.” Jack reached beside the bed and fished the evidence bag out of her bin.

“What are you doing?” She asked.

“Starting my own collection.” He grinned as he tossed the bag onto her dressing table.

Phryne laughed jubilantly as he pulled her back into his warm embrace and she buried herself in the crook of his neck.


	13. Chocolate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the annual food kink chapter. Remember fam, always kink responsibly!
> 
> Kanste chose the word chocolate.

"How's that?" Phryne asked as Jack tested the scarves binding his wrists to the bed posts. 

"Almost too good." He eyed her suspiciously and she grinned in delight. Of course, she had done this before, but never had the opportunity thrilled her so much. 

"And now the eyes." He put his head forward gamely and she placed the blindfold over him. "Everything alright?" She asked. 

"Mmhm." 

"Now hold still." She instructed as she pulled the bowl of chocolate sauce out from hiding. She tested it with her finger. It was perfectly warm. She drizzled the spoon over his chest and he hissed and jerked back.

"What the..." 

"I told you to hold still." She scolded. "Here." She dipped her finger in the bowl and held it up to his lips. She watched in anticipation as his tongue tentatively jutted out to examine the mysterious substance before sucking her finger into his mouth in recognition. 

"Chocolate." He hummed. The tip of his tongue toyed with her fingertip the same way he toyed with her clitoris and her core began to throb in jealousy. 

"Now kiss me." She murmured before sliding the spoon into her mouth. She leaned in to kiss him and relished in the sound of his groan as he discovered the taste of her tongue. She lowered herself to clean the chocolate off his chest, flicking his nipples with her tongue playfully as she did so. 

She followed suit with the rest of his body, painting his flesh with her fingertip wherever her fancy took her: in the soft flesh of his open elbow, along his jaw, up his thigh... She drew lines and lapped at them until his entire body writhed beneath her. When she thought he couldn't take it anymore, she hung the spoon over his throbbing cock, drizzling chocolate over him and watching it drip down his body. 

"Oh, Jesus." Jack hissed, sounding surprised. It took her a moment to realize he wasn't surprised at all, he was just that desperate to touch her. The scarves bit at his wrists as he forgot he was bound. 

"Relax, Jack. Enjoy this." Phryne grinned as she lowered her mouth over him.  She lapped at him like an ice cream cone, letting only the tip of her tongue touch only the path of the chocolate. 

"Fuck, Phryne. Oh, God, please." He begged as she systematically destroyed his sanity. 

"Please what?" She taunted, her breath warm on his thigh.

"Suck me." His hips rose off the mattress in a frantic attempt to find her mouth. 

"Suck you how?" She asked. 

"Suck me blind." He cried in frustration and she felt her body flood with desire at his words.

She ravaged him, taking him all the way to the back of her throat before sliding back out to his tip and down again until he erupted inside her, spilling down her throat in long hot pulses.

When she finally looked up again, he was boneless, hanging limp from the scarves and panting heavily.  

She wanted to memorize the image for posterity. 

"Take this blindfold off." He commanded, his authority slowly returning to him.

Phryne climbed up his body and removed it, watching as he blinked in the low light.

"Scarves too." He raised his right wrist and she untied the knots for him. "Chocolate?" He asked, looking for the bowl. She handed it to him curiously, knowing he was about to turn the tables hard, but unsure of quite how he'd accomplish it. 

"Do you want these?" She asked as she held out the materials she had used on him.

"I'm not going to need them." Jack replied. "You're going to do everything I say without them." He said firmly and she understood immediately.

She was meant to follow orders.

It was as uncharacteristic for her to be obedient as it was for him to beg for fellatio blindfolded and tied to her headboard but she was practically panting with desire to play his game. 

"Isn't that right, Phryne?" Jack questioned when she didn't respond.

"Yes sir." She grinned wickedly. "I've been very, very bad." 


	14. Gratitude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Flashofthefuse chose the word gratitude.

“Jack?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you sleeping?”

“Apparently not.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Mmhm.”

“Why did you come to England?”

“I seem to recall a telegram begging me to come get you before you murdered your father. Or did you send it to the wrong man?”

“Of course not. But why did you accept?”

“Mm…will you settle for ‘Because I was in love with you, you crazy woman. Now go back to sleep.’?”

“If that’s the truth.”

“It is.”

“...”

“Why are you asking me this now?”

“Because when I asked you to come, you said yes and then we never spoke of it ever again.”

“I didn't realize there was anything left to discuss.”

“You dropped your whole life and got on a ship for me.”

“Well, the ticket was already paid for.”

“...Have I told you lately how grateful I am that you put up with my ridiculous requests every day?”

“Just during the day? Because the nights are not any… Oh, Phryne! You know I hate that. Do you have any circulation at all? Your feet are as cold as ice.”

“I don’t know. How are my hands?”

“Mm, a bit warmer.”

“And my mouth?”

“...”

“...”

“It’s a lovely mouth.”

“Thank you. Yours is good too. Strong. Warm…”

“...”

“...”

“That’s it. If we're committing to staying up, we’re going to do this properly.”

“Oh, you’re staying up alright.”

“Roll over.”

“Why do you get to be on top?”

“Because you woke me up in the middle of the night with an inane question about a decision I made ages ago.”

“It wasn’t inane. What if you had said no?”

“Phryne, I could have never said no and you knew that, even back then.”

“You could have. You could have let me go off to England alone and forgotten all about me. You could have walked away after Gertie’s accident.”

“I tried to, remember? It was worse.”

“Worse than inane questions and torturing you with my cold feet?”

“Yes. Much worse.”

“...”

“...”

“...Jack?”

“Hmm?”

“It was much worse for me too.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“...You know how you could make it up to me?”

“I’m not letting you be on top.”

“Why not?”

“Principles.”

“But what if I...”

“No.”

“Jack!”

“No.”

“But I had gratitude!”

“You sacrificed your gratitude when you woke me up only to stick your miserably cold feet all over my side of the bed. Now, will you kindly stop talking long enough for me to kiss you?”

“I just…”

“Phryne, hold still…”

"..."

"..."

“Oh...need you to keep doing that.”

“...”

“Oh, so good…”

“Mmmm.”

“Ooohhhhhh. Right there.”

“Yes.”

“Uh-huh. Oh, Jack. Harder.”

“There?”

“Yesss! Oh.”

“Mmm.”

“Oh!”

“Oh, Phryne...”

“Yes! Jack! Yes! Yes! YES! YESSSS!”

“Ngh. Ngh. Ngh. Ngh! Phryne! Oh God! Uhhhhh.”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“So much better than the alternative."


	15. Kilt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bill0014 chose the word kilt.

“My father seems to be behaving.” Phryne informed Jack as she crawled into bed beside him. “Or my mother is lying to protect him from me. Either way, it appears things are back to normal.” She sighed as she set the letter aside.

“I’m glad. You could do with a break from worrying about them.” 

She had been constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop for the last few months since she had returned from England and Jack knew the anxiety, although hidden well, had to be taking its toll on her.

“Were your parents this aggravating?” She asked him. 

“Mm, I’m not sure. My father was as Scottish as a kilt, as my mother used to say.” He smirked at the memory. “Serious, a bit dark, cheap as anyone, but he loved a good drink.” Phryne smiled as he held up his own glass of whiskey. “He was a maintenance engineer on ships, it made him very methodical.”

“He liked to see how the pieces fit together. Sounds familiar.” She smiled at the thought that he had inherited his skills. 

“He died of pneumonia just after Rosie and I got married so I really didn’t know him as an adult.” He added more quietly and Phryne moved closer to him, snuggling under his arm. 

“My mother was more lively. She had a great sense of humor, loved books, poetry, music. She taught me to play the piano.”

“Is that where your love of Shakespeare comes from?” She asked him curiously. 

“Mm. She used to read me plays as bedtime stories. Macbeth gave me nightmares for months. ‘Thy bloody and invisible hand’.” He waved his fingers at her with a laugh. 

“Then I owe her a debt.” Phryne acknowledged. “It’s impossible to keep my wits about me when you start quoting Shakespeare.” She purred, transitioning to a new topic. 

“Why do you think I’ve memorized so much of it?” He smirked. “You’ve forced me to weaponize it.” 

“Is that so?” She raised an eyebrow. “And which of my various skills undo you, Inspector?” She asked as she brazenly cupped him through his pajama bottoms, silently reminding him that she held more than a few weapons herself. 

“All of them.” He answered truthfully, closing his eyes. “Everything you do, for better or worse, turns my head.” 

“Maybe I just enjoy having your attention.” She suggested as she tugged on the drawstring of his pajamas and slipped her hand inside, happy to find he was naked underneath the silk. 

“The thought had crossed my mind.” He sighed as she stroked him languidly. He leaned back against the headboard as she pulled him out to continue her ministrations properly. She nipped at his jaw before placing hot, wet kisses down his neck. He could feel his body tightening slowly and he knew it wouldn’t be long. He groaned as he realized she was quietly panting in time with her actions beside him, drunk with power and arousal at feeling him harden and lengthen at her touch. She was probably dripping for him inside those peach silk….

He gasped and his eyes flew open in surprise as her warm mouth slid around him and sucked hard, tugging his climax from him. His cock exploded at the unexpected sensation and he swore under his breath as he seized violently underneath her.

When he finally opened his eyes, she was smirking vengefully down on him.

“Weaponize that, Jack Robinson.” She murmured wickedly as she pulled his pajama pants back into place.


	16. Cocktail

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one just sort of appeared against my will. Hurt/Comfort follows. Apologies if there's whiplash after all that fluff and sex from recent chapters. 
> 
> Izzyandlouie chose the word cocktail.

She met him in the foyer, mid-party, with a rather large cocktail in her hand. She beamed at finally seeing him arrive.

“Jack! Where have you…” She didn’t bother finishing her question as he hung up his hat and turned around to face her. She could tell immediately that he was not up for their usual banter tonight.

“Long day.” He explained anyway, feeling guilty for being the reason the smile fell from her face.

“Go upstairs.” She whispered as she touched his jaw gently. “Get in the bath. I’ll be right up.”

“No, Phryne. You have guests. Stay.”

She analyzed his face before overruling him. 

“If you wanted to be alone tonight, you would have gone home to your own bed. I’ll be up in a few minutes. Go.”

Jack didn’t have the energy to fight her on a good day and today had not been a good day. He nodded silently, giving her permission to do what she would have done anyway. 

As he headed up the steps, he heard her heels disappear behind the parlor doors and he wondered briefly what excuse she would give her guests.

He moved on autopilot, turning on the taps, undressing, and sinking into the steaming water. He had just managed to close his eyes when he heard the door open. 

“Were people horribly disappointed?” He asked.

“No, I told them there was a family emergency and everyone understood. They're dining now and will see themselves out. Mr. Butler offered to bring up some plates for us.”

“I have a headache. I don't think I could eat.” 

As soon as the words left his mouth, he knew he had revealed too much. She knew something was very wrong.

“Lie back.” She instructed as she pulled up her vanity chair behind his head. “I’ll ruffle your pomade.” 

She began to massage his scalp slowly, her fingers somehow deep and gentle all at the same time. 

“I bought your Christmas present today.” She began casually. “I think you’re going to like it.” She was trying to distract him and he loved her for it, but his chest began to tighten as he realized Christmas was next week. 

“Did you want to give each other our gifts at the party with everyone else or privately?” She asked.

Jack felt tears prickling his eyes. He closed them in a desperate attempt to keep them in but one rolled hotly down his cheek and before he could stop it, he broke down, slumping forward and covering his face, unable to stand another second of such undeserved comfort. 

“Jack, what is it?” She wanted to know, wanted to make it better.

She couldn't. 

“Please, Jack, talk to me.” She was crouching next to the tub now, but he wasn't ready to look at her. He knew she had never seen him cry before, not like this, and he heard the fear in her voice. It pulled him from his grief. He took a deep breath. 

“I lost a constable today.” He explained as he wiped his tears away and glanced down at them on his fingers. 

“Oh Jack…” Her voice was too sympathetic and he couldn't bear to see the matching countenance he knew she wore.

She ran her hands across his chest, wrapping him in a sideways hug and he set his head down on her shoulder. His hand reached up and held on to her arm. 

“I’m getting you wet.” He commented after a moment.

“I don't care.” She said defiantly. 

“Fetch me a towel and I’ll get out of this thing.” He murmured, ever the pragmatic one but she looked hesitant to let him go. “I promise you can hold me again once I get dressed.”

“Promise?” She looked at him sternly and he nodded.

She knew far too well that he would try to distance himself from her while he grieved. He tried not to shut her out the way he used to shut out Rosie, but he couldn't stop it entirely. It was just how he coped.

He felt her careful eyes on him as he stood up and got dressed in a pair of pajama pants. She let the water out of the tub and then did the same, meeting him back in bed with her favorite silk nightgown on. Jack buried his face in her torso and she stroked his hair once more, letting him be.

“He was a friend of Collins.” Jack began when he thought he could. “I thought for a second it was Collins. They were standing next to each other when the gun went off. I didn't see him. No one did. He thought if he killed an officer, we would kill him rather than take him to prison.”

“Did you?”

“No, he’ll be hanged.”

“Good.”

She continued to stroke his arms, his back, his neck.

“How is Hugh?” She asked quietly.

“Not well. I gave him leave. Told him not to come back until he was ready but Higgins was his best friend. Only 25, had a young wife. It's Christmas.” He swallowed back more tears, refusing to cry again. “We had to be the ones to tell her.”

Phryne closed her eyes, not knowing what to say at hearing such heartbreak.

“If anything happened to you…” She paused, unable to even consider the thought. “I would fall apart.” She decided. “I don't know that I would be able to get out of bed for weeks, maybe months. But we know what we’ve agreed to, all of us, in this line of work. So I know it’s not much, but I would take comfort in the fact that he died doing what he loved, he died making the world a better place. It’s more comfort than our victim’s families will ever receive.” 

Jack knew she spoke from experience; she knew what it meant to have a loved one senselessly murdered, with no answers, no reasoning. He sat up beside her and touched her face. 

“I love you.” He told her, grateful for her wisdom and comfort on such a terrible day.

“I love you.” She kissed him chastely and he found himself unsatisfied. He pulled her back in for a longer kiss, finding everything he needed to recover in her lips.

Her hands quietly slipped to the waistband of his pants and lowered them. He kicked them off without thought as she pulled her nightgown over her head. 

She kissed him like he was the oxygen she needed to breathe as she pulled him down over top of her. He was dying to take the relief that only she could provide him.  He gave in to his desires and buried himself inside her. 

She was heaven, nirvana, the elixir of life. He would never find anything better than this. 

Phryne cried out his name as she moved beneath him, just as desperate for him as he was for her. They sought their comfort in each other as they moved together passionately until they both fell apart together.  It was the most intense and intimate lovemaking they had ever shared and they were both left shaking and emotional afterwards as they lay side by side, entwined in each other's arms.

“Jack?” Phryne whispered, looking into his eyes. “I always want to be the person you come to when nights like tonight happen.”

“Always.” He promised sincerely, surprised by her statement. There was no one else in the world he'd rather be with.

“I also want to be the person that other people come to, if something should happen to you.” She requested. 

“Nothing is going to…”

“Marry me.” She interrupted.

Jack couldn't breathe.

“This is not about today, although I’m sure it seems that way. I've been thinking about this. We know what we have together and that will never change, but I want everyone else to know it too. This is real. It deserves to be honored that way.”

“Phryne, you hate the idea of marriage.”

“I hate ownership. But you don’t own me, nor I you. You respect my estate, my lifestyle, and I think, deep down, you want this too. To have a home together, a life shared completely.”  

He considered her offer and everything they had been through over the past few years. They were happy now and he couldn't see that changing with a marriage license. And unlike his first marriage, their eyes were both open to what may lie in store and they still wanted to commit to going through it together. Perhaps, they'd committed long ago and were finally willing to give that commitment a name. 

“Ask me again.” He replied, harkening back to their early days and she smiled. 

“Jack Robinson."

"Yes?" 

"Can I be your wife?” She asked him hopefully. 

“Yes.” He grinned. She squealed in delight and threw her arms around him.

“Thank you. I know it's silly, to want to make it official now, after..." 

"Phryne?" Jack pulled her apart from him for a moment.    


"Yes?" 

"Be quiet." He commanded as he kissed her madly. 


	17. Piquant

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fire_Sign wrote a chapter yesterday for Buoys and Ballast that inspired a deep and burning need for me to write a drunk phracking story. Thanks to her for the inspiration!
> 
> Missingmissfisher chose the word piquant.

 

Jack watched her petite and piquant body sway to the music he was playing on the piano and he found himself falling even further in love with her. She was graceful in a free way that he envied. She had no hesitation when she danced around the room. She was simply in the moment.

“Miss Fisher, are you intoxicated?” He asked, feeling a little inebriated himself but he polished off the last of his drink anyway.

“I wouldn’t say intoxicated...” She grinned at the lie. “Why, are you?”

He assessed his own sobriety, or lack thereof. He had no recollection of when or how he lost his suit coat and waistcoat and his blue tie hung loosely around his neck. His shirtsleeves were rolled up to allow for better playing.

“Perhaps.” He allowed.

“Good.” She danced her way over to him, apparently still hearing his music in her head, and lowered herself onto his lap.

“Hello.” He murmured as her body slid down his chest alluringly. She was trying harder than required to be seductive. She had no idea how badly he wanted her all the time.

“Hi.” She smiled saucily. “How are you feeling?” She asked as she pulled off his tie for him and dropped it on the floor.

Oh. That was how.

“Fine.” He replied, not wanting to give too much away. “How do you feel?”

“I don’t know. How do I feel?” She asked as she placed his hands on her thighs and moved them up under her dress to feel her garters. The silk of her stocking was only slightly more soft than her skin and he had trouble answering the question in his haze.

“Soft.” He finally responded as he fumbled with the stockings until he was free to roll them down her legs. He’d often fantasized about her legs (years of her flashing them in his office will do that) but the reality of them beneath his fingertips was always so much better.

“Jack,” She called his name to get his attention as she slid further up the piano and sat on top of it. “Have you ever wondered if you could use those long fingers of yours to play me?” She asked him, spreading her legs in wanton abandon.

He whimpered and closed his eyes as he realized how easy it would be to do just that.

“I have now.” He assured her as he let his hands start on her knees and run the length of her thighs.

“I have too.” She murmured, running her fingers through his hair and pulling him slightly closer to her core. “I used to touch myself and imagine they were your fingers, touching me just like this. On your desk, on the piano...”

Jack stood up to be eye to eye with her again and he dragged her smalls slowly off her body. They fell forgotten to the pedals below them. He could smell her desire for him and his fingers itched to be inside her.

“Did it make you wet?” He asked gruffly as he let his finger toy with her.

“Yes.”

“Did you come?” He kissed her neck. 

“Always.” She sighed as he kept his touch feather light, never touching her where she wanted him.

“Was it enough?” He whispered darkly in her ear, already knowing the answer from his own torment.

“Never.” She confessed and Jack slid two fingers inside her for her honesty.

She cried out and threw her arms around him to keep her balance. Jack let his fingers slide in and out of her for a few moments before circling her clit and pumping inside her faster.

She lowered herself backwards onto the piano and Jack had to hold her hip still with his free hand to keep her from arching too hard off the wood but it put his thumb in the perfect position to rub her clit.

At feeling both of his hands on her, Phryne let out a moan that vibrated right through him to his own throbbing cock; and with only a few more circles of her clit, she let out a cry that might have woken the neighbors if her house were any smaller.

Jack looked down at her, hair and dress askew, skin flush with satisfaction and too much wine, and he realized how grateful he was for all those years of forced piano practice.


	18. Ephemera

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another music in the parlor one. Who am I to deny the muse? The song I used was Aileen Stanley’s version of “Song of the Wanderer”. She makes it all slow and sad. I’ll post the youtube clip to tumblr if you like to follow my headcanon or just need a 20s playlist in your life.
> 
> Zannadubs23 chose the word ephemera.

 

Phryne placed the new record on the gramophone. It was slow and soft and she began to sway to it unconsciously. 

It was the same record she had listened to a year ago as she cried over Jack’s declaration that he was walking away from them. From her. 

They had been so sure they would destroy each other, so certain they had to walk away for the good of the other, that the fact that they were quite happily together now without much fanfare made it laughable.

But back then…

She had loved him enough to let him go. Although she would have proclaimed, and did at the time, that she was doing it to save her independent lifestyle, as if the two were mutually exclusive. 

She knew better now. 

He had loved her enough to let her be, not wanting to harness her, or break her in any way, even though all he had wanted was to keep her safe. He had assumed the security he brought to her life would make her resent him. 

He knew better now. 

“Care for a dance?” Jack’s voice interrupted her moment alone and she turned around to see him leaning against the doorframe of the parlor, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He had a teasing smirk on his lips but his eyes were adoring her. 

This was the Jack she would always remember in her mind’s eye: leaning, teasing, loving. 

“It’s not really a dancing song. It’s a bit sad.” She warned him as he leisurely left his place in the doorway and made his way over to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist. 

“Are you sad?” He asked, a furrow appearing on his brow. 

“No. I just wanted to remember something.” She said as she swayed in his arms slowly, never really dancing, just letting him rock her on their feet. 

“It sounds sad.” He frowned over her shoulder at the speaker. “And a melancholy Miss Fisher just won't do.” Jack argued, leaning in and kissing her so slowly, she thought she might combust from the fire he stoked inside her.

“It’s late. Come to bed.” He requested when the song ended. 

“One more dance?” She requested sentimentally. “Slow and close?”

He smiled softly and nodded, unable to deny her. 

Those other men, and the life she had thought she needed, had been ephemera. 

This man, this dance, they were eternal. 


	19. Cerulean

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Break Glass in Case of Emergency to release the Phrack Desk Sex post! (The awful “Monday before a holiday” malaise totally counts as an emergency.) Also, sitting at your desk reading smutty fic probably counts as valid work on this day too.*
> 
> *Rosita is not held responsible for anything she says. Please job responsibly.
> 
> 221A_brina chose the word cerulean

“I want to ask you a question and I want you to answer me honestly.” Phryne said, her cerulean eyes telling him she was quite serious as she looked up from a file. Jack nodded. “Have you ever had sex in this office?”

“Excuse me?” He asked, surprised by the boldness of her question. “Is this what you think about while I’m actually working?”

"I’m just curious. I’m sure you’ve worked some late nights. Your wife never dropped by to... visit?”

“My wife and I didn't even have sex in our bedroom.” He reminded her frankly, before immediately regretting saying the words out loud. He tried to keep his old life separate from his new one as much as possible. “And besides, the place is always filled with people. It’s never quiet.”

“You’ve never thought about it?” She asked and he felt himself turn red as his brain flooded with every, single thought he’d ever had about it all at once.

“Mmmm.” She hummed as she took a step forward. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Jack cleared his throat.

“Have you...thought about it?” He asked, wanting to turn the tables on her. It was his office after all. He should be the one asking the questions.

“Quite frequently.” She confessed. “There’s a lock on both of your doors.” She informed him without ever losing eye contact with him. “The after dinner shift seems to be the quietest, when the day shifters are gone but before things pick up later at night. You’re also technically off duty, so you are always a bit more relaxed, even if you don't realize it.” She purred.

Those things were all currently happening. Jack realized. And when had she managed to lock the doors? He wracked his brain, but was at a loss.

“You’ve clearly done your homework.” He noted as he tossed his pen onto his desk in resignation.

“I’ve a very thorough imagination.” She promised and Jack’s eyes went dark.

“If we were to...here…” He replied, flustered.

“Where would it be?” Phryne grinned as she read his mind. “That’s the variable that makes all the planning interesting.” She looked around. “There isn’t a lot of wall space, but if we got carried away, against the door?” She glanced at the corner. “But which one?” She wondered aloud. “I do have a fondness for this desk.” She murmured as she stroked the length of it. “Against it, on top of it, underneath it…” She bit her lip and Jack could practically feel her mouth on his cock.

“The way you sit on the corner here...”  Jack finally joined in. “There are many endings but that’s always how it starts.” He swallowed hard as she got up and sat down there.

“Like this?”

“Mm.” He commented as his mouth went dry at seeing his fantasy come to life.

“I see what you mean.” She said as she motioned for him to come closer. “I think we’ve got several possibilities. Do you have a favorite?” She asked.

He realized exactly what she was doing. She was trying to take over the last, unconquerable space. She wanted full dominion over every aspect of their lives, but Jack was never a pushover and he certainly wouldn’t cede this territory to her. He stood up before settling between her legs. He took the file out of her hand bravely and tossed it to the floor. She raised an eyebrow at his newfound confidence.

“We’ll have to test them all to find out.” He leaned in closer. “How prepared are you?”

“Extremely.” She promised as she led his hand up her skirt to find she wasn't wearing anything under her dress. “I’m ready for you.” She teased him, her lips brushing his ear.

“If we do this, you have to be silent, do you understand?” She nodded, immediately setting to work undoing his trousers, lest he should change his mind.

“Bend over.” He instructed as he motioned towards the front of his office.

“Jack.” She exhaled, already on board with his plan. She faced the front of his office and flipped her dress up around her hips, revealing her perfect ass to only him.

“Hands flat on the desk, palms down.” He told her and she did just that. “Don’t move them.”

She was all too happy to comply.

“This is for every time you’ve misbehaved in this office.” He murmured in her ear as he grabbed her hips and stroked himself along her wet curves a few times. “Including today.” He slowly pressed himself into her and felt her shiver underneath him.

“Not. A. Word.” He reminded her and she nodded as he slipped slowly from her and thrust into her again. He had anticipated that taking her this way, in his office, her bent over his desk, would be frantic, hot, and desperate but instead, he was going for silent torture, giving her time to fixate on just how indecorous they were being. He knew that more than half the fun for her was in making trouble. And Christ did he enjoy helping her have fun.

“Was this a part of your plan, Phryne?” He whispered as he thrust deeply into her. “I bet it wasn't.”

She let out a whimper and spread her legs wider for him.

“I bet you expected to barge into my office and corrupt me during business hours, didn't you?”

He heard her moan quietly.

“I know how aroused it makes you to misbehave. To make me lose control for you.”

“Yes.” She hissed under her breath. 

“But you forgot one thing, Phryne.” He bent over her so she would know he was serious. “This is _my_ office, not your boudoir.” He reminded her, thrusting into her faster as she writhed beneath him. “I make the plans here. Is that understood?”

She bit her lip, so close to shattering around him. He knew that if he touched her, it was over.

“Phryne?” He repeated, hovering his hand over her, denying her release until she succumbed.

“Yes.” She quietly pleaded and he sent her spiraling through her climax. She turned her head to the side, muffling her cries in the crook of her elbow and he followed her, jaw tight and completely silent.

When he slipped from her, they straightened and cleaned themselves up as best they could and he sank into his desk chair once more. 

"Was that the sort of thing you expected, Miss Fisher?" He asked her as he folded his hands over his waistcoat. She smiled at his return to the professional.

"Nothing about you is expected, Jack." She complimented him as she closed her compact. "It's why I love you." She leaned down to kiss him at last and Jack realized that he had missed it, that connection with her.

"Next time, I want to look into your eyes, be able to kiss you." He requested as he touched her hand.

Phryne smiled at his assumption there would be a next time.

"I'm yours when you want me, Inspector." She stood up. "After all, it is your office." She smirked.


	20. Stumbling block

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whopooh chose the phrase stumbling block.

Phryne was going to murder Jack Robinson. 

Sure, she might hang for it, but she had always been willing to pay the price for a worthwhile crime.

Now, the only issue was to decide how.

As her thoughts vacillated between asking Mac to slip her some poison for his nightcap and smothering him with a pillow, Mr. Butler entered the parlor. He was preparing to ask if she needed anything else before he finally retired to the safety of his room for the evening but one sight of Phryne and even he walked straight out again.

She stood up and began to pace in front of the fire, unable to stand still for the rage.

Bert and Cec could run him over in their cab. Accidents happen to cyclists all the time, she rationalized.

She heard the front door open and she immediately turned to stand with her arms folded across her chest.

“Miss Fisher.” Jack greeted far too formally. He was clearly just as prepared for the argument about to unfold, but in his own, cold way. He was going to try and balance her out. 

“Well?” She asked him. “What do you have to say for yourself?” 

Jack poured himself a drink before heading over to the chaise. He sat down so calmly, she knew it was meant to annoy her. 

She should have gone with the poison. 

“Phryne…” He started rationally. 

“YOU ARRESTED ME!” She screeched, losing all sense of calm at hearing his condescending voice. “No, you didn’t even have the decency to arrest me. You had a constable do it while you went on to more important things.” 

“You were trespassing against the owner’s wishes and I had a crime scene to secure. I asked you to leave, and you refused. I didn’t have time to play Governess.” 

“Govern….” She huffed, unable to even finish the word. She was turning bright red. “I was working that crime scene!” She cried. 

“Were you planning on reporting the murder too or did you want to let every suspect in the state get a good, long head start?” 

“You’re just upset because  _ I _ was the one with the head start.” She crossed her arms. “I never thought that you’d let your pride get in the way of…”

“It has nothing to do with pride.” He maintained, shaking his head. “You have no respect for…”

“Oh please. If you and I had been working the crime scene together…”

“As a member of the Victoria Police Force, I would have been able to secure it and we wouldn’t be in this mess.” He said simply. “I was just doing my job, Phryne.”

“With me!” She pointed out. “You were doing your job with  _ me! _ ” She repeated back to him. “I’m your…”

“My what?” Jack asked, standing up. “What are you to me, Phryne? Because I would love to know.” 

Between his raised voice and the fact that he was now staring down at her, his chest heaving, Phryne couldn’t help but freeze. She had pushed a button she hadn’t intended to press. Jack was nearly shaking and her body mistook the rage for sexual tension and she felt herself react to his towering presence. She accidentally let herself look at his mouth, which was in her direct eyeline, but still…such a mistake. It was pressed tight in frustration and she wanted so badly to pry it open. Without thinking, she wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and kissed him frantically. 

Jack was caught off guard for a moment but he sank into the kiss, nearly giving in to her before coming to his senses. 

“No.” Jack said as he pushed her away for his own benefit as much as hers. “You can’t just kiss your way out of this conversation.” He said, wiping her lipstick off with the back of his hand, physically rejecting the taste of her. 

“I was giving you your answer.” She defended her actions, even though she wasn’t sure of that statement herself. 

“No, you were trying to distract me.” 

“I’m the one who got distracted.” She said honestly as she glanced at those treacherous lips again. If ever there was a stumbling block, Jack’s lips qualified. 

Jack looked as if he might actually believe her story, maybe he just wanted to, but he turned away from her, removing the temptation. 

“We can’t keep doing this, Phryne.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose. 

It was an old line and she had the counter argument ready.

“We haven't done anything, Jack. That’s the problem.”

He groaned in frustration.

“I don’t want to fight about this again.” 

“You won't sleep with me. You won't work with me. You won’t fight with me. Why the hell  _ are _ you here, Jack?” She asked honestly. Her rage was giving way to exhaustion. She was tired of having this fight over and over again.

The question caught him in a net he couldn’t escape from and his silence spoke volumes.

“I want you, in every sense of the word.” She told him frankly, taking a step closer to him. “Why is that not enough for you?”

“Because you have more to give.” Jack’s tone was short but he was so certain, it took her by surprise. “And I refuse to settle for less than everything you have. I’ve done that before.”

She gave a roll of her eyes. She couldn’t compete with the tragic divorcee card. Did he honestly think that she was holding back from him?  _ That  _ was why they had reached this stubborn stalemate?

“You have so much heart, Phryne. More than anyone I’ve ever met. I’m just asking you to try and trust me with it. That’s all.” 

“And I’m asking the same from you, Jack.” She replied. “If you truly trusted me, you wouldn’t need my promise of eternal monogamy to prove that I’m loyal to you.” 

“So why won’t you give me your word that you won’t be with anyone else?” 

“Because things change!” She cried with a shrug. “How we feel right now might not be how we feel in a week, a month, or a year.”

Jack fell silent at her statement and it unnerved her more than his shouting. 

“And how do you feel right now?” He asked as she realized what she had revealed to him.  

She looked at the worn out man standing in front of her. If he were anyone else, she would have given up on him months ago and moved on. If he were anyone else, she wouldn’t still be trying. 

“I feel like for the last few months, I have been standing at the foot of a wall, stretching as far as I can reach, but you still won’t throw down a ladder. And maybe you never will, but I’m still standing here because I don’t know where else to go.” She confessed. “Do you?” 

“No.” He muttered honestly. 

“So what do you need me to say to pass your tests, hmm? That I love you? Fine, I love you. That I want to be with you now and forever? Sure.” She paused. “If words are all you want to hear, Jack, I can say them. But what do you actually  _ need _ ?” 

Jack stared at her like he had just found the missing piece of the puzzle. The look was so familiar that, for a moment, Phryne forgot that they were discussing something personal rather than professional. 

He crossed the room in a few long strides and kissed her, taking what he needed from her without a sound. 

Phryne pulled away after a few moments.

“Don’t think that just because you are kissing me, I am going to forgive you for tonight.” 

“I know. You’re impossibly stubborn.” He informed her before kissing her again. 

“Well you’re aggravatingly cautious.” She defended herself against his lips. She wrapped her arm around his neck and pushed him onto the chaise. She placed a knee on either side of him.

“You cause more trouble than you’re worth.” He said confidently as he began to unbutton her blouse. “And the papers tell me you’re worth quite a lot.” 

“You’re...oh, you’re, mmm.” She closed her eyes and tried to remember what her next insult had been but instead it just focused all of her attention on Jack’s mouth exploring her breasts. She let out a low moan as his hand ran up the back of her thigh to play with the top of her stocking. 

“If you keep making those noises, this is going to go much faster than either of us would like.” Jack warned.

“Come upstairs.” She ran her hands through his hair. He looked up at her and nodded. She felt a shiver run through her as she stepped off the chaise and backed up enough to release him. 

She held her blouse together with her hand and nodded towards the staircase. Jack followed silently behind her but she felt his gaze on her back. As soon as she got to her room, she removed her clothing in favor of a robe.

“Get undressed.” She murmured as she touched his face. “I’ll be right back.”

He still hadn’t spoken but when she returned he was undressed and on the bed waiting for her. 

She reached for her sash but he stopped her. 

“Let me.” He requested as he waved her to the bed. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time.” He confessed. 

She nodded and made her way towards him.

Jack stood up on his knees and he slowly slipped his finger into the silk seam that ran down the length of her body, his fingertip enjoying the smoothness of the silk while his knuckle trailed down her skin. 

She had to close her eyes at the intimacy.

He paused at the knot she had hastily made around her waist and he pulled the sash loose. His hands lovingly slipped under the silk and pushed it off her shoulders, leaving it to pool around her feet.

She opened her eyes when she felt his hand reach for hers. He pulled her towards him and she placed a matching knee on the mattress. He wrapped an arm around her waist and slowly lowered her underneath him.

And as they made love, gently and warmly, he had never been more open and she had never been more sure of her feelings for him. 

Later, as he held her close that night, he offered words she didn’t expect from him.

“I’m sorry.” He spoke quietly. 

“Were we fighting?” She asked him languorously, wanting to forget it had ever happened.

“I was. Too much.” He said quietly. “You were right, Phryne. I was scared of this and I shut down. It’s what I do.” He confessed. 

“Well, you are aggravatingly cautious.” She teased him. 

“Perhaps, but I’m not going to fight it anymore. Because,” he took a deep breath, “I’m in love with you.” He said simply. “And you don’t have to say anything in return. I just wanted you to know that this is me, throwing down the ladder.” 

She smiled softly. 

“There won’t be anyone else.” She informed him. “There hasn’t been anyone else for quite some time because... I’m in love with you too. I didn’t want to admit that to myself in case you didn’t…” She paused. “But you did. Thank you.” She said sincerely. 

He nodded and kissed her. 

“And I’m sorry too.” She informed him. “I may or may not have spent the evening trying to come up with ways to have you murdered.”

“Any good ones?” He smirked. 

“Several, but I’m not telling you. I may need them one day.” She rolled over and turned off the lamp beside the bed. “Sleep well, Jack.” She teased. 

“Sleep we..” He scoffed. “Maddening woman.” He muttered under his breath as he fluffed the pillow beneath him roughly before shoving it back under his head. 


	21. Stove

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Phryne’s birthday! I accidentally used a bunch of words in this one but for the title’s sake, I’m going with stove because I’m lazy.
> 
> Kidnthehall chose the words stove and rhyme.
> 
> Leafingbookstea chose the words ribbon and packaging.

**Before:**

Jack snuck in the back of the kitchen and set the bottle of whiskey, wrapped with a bright red bow, down on the kitchen table.

“How’s it coming, Mr. Butler?” He asked as he glanced over at the chef, stirring what appeared to be soup warming on the stove.

“Quite well, Inspector.” He smiled as Dot brought in the cake, Hugh traipsing behind her.

“What rhymes with Phryne?” Cec stuck his head into the kitchen to ask the group.

“Tiny?” Jack offered and Bert and Cec grinned and went back into the parlor.

“Do I want to know?” Jack asked and Dot just shook her head.

“They’re writing her a song, I think.”

“And how much ale went into that decision?”

“Not enough.” Hugh replied dryly. “I’ve spoken to Jane. They should be on their way home from the docks now.”

“Excellent.” Mr. Butler left to give the dining room table one more check.

“Food, cake, presents, two slightly drunk, serenading commos. Are we forgetting anything?” Jack asked his senior constable.

“The guest of honor.” He said simply.

They all gathered in the dining room, taking their respective seats and leaving the head of the table reserved for her. Jack glanced at the empty chair beside him and he couldn’t help but remember the first birthday he spent with her. The pair of them, heartbroken, exhausted, and grieving, for two very different reasons, putting on a brave face and muddling through. They had come so far from that night.

Dot shushed them as she heard the car pull up, far too quickly for Jack’s liking per usual. He grinned as he heard Jane’s voice coming up the sidewalk, chatting a mile a minute.

“Are you hungry? I’ve had Mr. Butler prepare a special meal.” Phryne grinned.

“Starving.” Jane replied as she led Phryne into the dining room with a giant smile. Jack gave the girl a wink hello as Phryne’s mouth fell open.

“Surprise!” Everyone shouted. “Happy birthday!”

**After:**

Jack took the last sip of his whiskey, admiring her graceful form as she bid goodbye to the last of the guests. Jane had long gone upstairs and they were finally left alone as she sat down on the chaise beside him. The ribbons and packaging of her presents still littered the floor beneath them but she curled up into his arms and inhaled.

“Thank you for my party.” She smiled softly.

“You’re welcome.” He set his glass down and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Did you have a good night?”

“It was lovely having everyone under one roof again.” She said quietly. “It’s been quite some time since that happened, what with Jane being at school and Hugh and Dot’s marriage. It felt like old times.”

“Not quite like old times.” Jack murmured in her ear. The smell of her perfume and the whiskey were making him hazy.

“No.” She agreed as she nibbled on her lip. “If it were old times, I’d go back upstairs and close my eyes and think about how much I wanted you beside me.”

“As would I.” He confessed. Phryne looked at him with an idea forming in her head.

“Do I have any birthday wishes left?” She asked him.

He glanced at his watch, which read well past midnight, but the sun wasn’t up yet. He was willing to lie to her a little.

“I think so.” He replied.

“I would be quite interested in hearing about the old times.” She hinted. Jack frowned for a moment before he realized what she was asking.

“Really?”

“What did you think about and when did you think it? Tell me a bedtime story, Jack.” She purred.

“Well, let me think.” He tried to remember a time when the idea of her was all he had to cling to. “I had a few continuations of what I wanted to happen in this parlor.” He offered.

“Go on.” She grinned as she settled into the edge of the chaise, facing him.

“We used to be drinking like this, our eyes would meet, and we’d break the mood somehow. Do you remember?”

“Of course.”

“Well, I used to imagine that we wouldn’t change the subject when those moments occurred. We’d lock eyes and one of us would be brave enough to close the distance between us and sometimes it would be slow. I’d touch your face, your neck, intertwine our fingers, really take it all in before kissing you the way I’d always longed to.”

“And if it were fast?”

“We’d cross the parlor like our lives depended on it.” He smiled. “We’d be a tangle of limbs, clothes falling to the wayside as I took you right here on this chaise, or in front of the fire.”

“Mmm. I like this fantasy.” She shifted slightly in front of him, her own thoughts arousing her.

“But my personal favorite, the one I kept coming back to, is one where I’d come over for some silly reason and you’d invite me up the stairs and we’d make love until morning.” He confessed. “And we would have all the time in the world. There was no rush. I could trace every piece of you with my mouth, my fingers and you could explore my body with yours. It would just be us, finally getting our moment.”

Phryne stared at him for a long moment and then she crawled over him and kissed him slowly.

“Take me upstairs.” She requested. “Make love to me. Don’t stop until the sun rises.”

“It would be my pleasure, Miss Fisher.” He replied quietly. 


	22. Velvety

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sarahtoo chose the word velvety.

Jack felt her eyes on him as he dried his wet hair with a towel. By the time he turned around to acknowledge her, she had pounced.

He'd barely had time to drop the towel in his hand before she wrenched the towel that hung around his hips to the floor and pushed him onto the bed.

Without a sound, she lowered herself onto his stomach, straddling him. Jack tensed and grunted as he felt her slick skin slide over his abdomen as the silk of her robe billowed around her and danced along his thighs as she moved. It created an impossibly sensual push and pull that, when combined with her eagerness, had him more than half-hard almost immediately.  

She leaned over and kissed him hard, her tongue dueling with his and he groaned into her mouth as her nipples scraped over his chest. She was everywhere at once, making it her mission to drive him wild.

Sensing his readiness, she moved backwards and let herself brush against his growing cock for a few strokes. She looked ecstatic as she took her own pleasure with every movement and Jack wished, not for the first time, that there was a way to capture moments like this in his memory forever.

When she was ready, she led him to her entrance and lowered herself down, encasing him inside her warm, wet body. Jack held onto her thighs as she leaned back and began to ride him at a deliriously good angle. The sounds she made were lethal as she let herself ravish him, completely uninhibited in every way. She took only what she needed, shattering hard above him and stilling when she was done.

Jack took the opportunity to turn her over, thrusting in comfortable strokes, taking his time to enjoy her lush, velvety skin sliding over his. He felt the edges of his orgasm moving in on him and he placed his fingers on her clit. He knew her well enough by now to know that she would come again if he were patient.

“Oh, Jack.” She moaned, unsure if she had it in her, but if satisfaction was what she had wanted when she attacked him, he would not be satisfied until she was boneless. He shifted his hips and she cried out, taking him as deeply as she could. The pressure of their two bodies, and his hand between them, were all it took to have her rolling through a softer but still pleasurable climax. Jack's body seized before spilling into her, a quiet expletive escaping his lips.

He collapsed over top of her with a groan and she held him tightly, refusing to let him leave.

“Stay.” She commanded, and he couldn’t understand how he wasn’t crushing her. He propped himself up on his elbows to look at her in questioning amazement.

“Not that I’m complaining, but care to explain what that was precisely?” He asked.

“I couldn’t help myself.” She murmured as she kissed his neck. “You made me lose my mind.”

“By drying my hair?”

“Mmm. I love your hair.” She looked up at it and ran a hand through the damp mess.

“And they've deemed you to be  _Honourable."_ Jack tsked at her loss of control.

“You’ll have to take the title up with the King.” She played along, her straying hands pulling him closer by his firm ass. She wanted his full weight on her.

“Something tells me if George saw you like this, he’d agree.” Jack said with a glance down at her hands before going in for a never-ending kiss.


	23. Unimaginable

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sarahtoo chose the word unimaginable.

“Jack!” Her voice echoed from above him and he looked to the deck of her ship. She was waving and he smiled and tilted the brim of his hat towards her. She skipped to the gangplank and he never took his eyes off her. She looked stunning, as always, but more importantly, she looked happy. He was standing at the bottom of the gangplank when she launched herself into his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck. He pulled her away from the crowds and made a tiny space for them behind a pillar and she kissed him wildly.

“Hello.” He chuckled at her outward desire for him. 

“I missed you so much.” She told him. “Don’t ever let my father back onto this continent ever again.”

“I’m not sure I have the authority…”

“Never.” She commanded. 

“I’ll do what I can.” He promised as he took the pleasure of just looking at her. “I missed you too by the way.” He smiled. 

“Take me home, Jack.” She requested. 

“My pleasure, Miss Fisher.” He said as he held out his arm and escorted her to the car. 

OOOOO

After a quick bath for Phryne and a long dinner that Mr. Butler must have spent days preparing, Phryne and Jack retired to the parlor. 

“You have to be exhausted.” Jack commented. 

“I couldn’t sleep if I wanted to. I’m home. You’re here.” She grinned. “Oh! Which reminds me. I missed Christmas while I was away, so I have something of a late present for you.” She said as she stood up and returned with a wrapped gift. She handed it to him and it looked like she was blushing.

Phryne Fisher blushing? This was a new decade.

“I found it tucked away in a little shop in London. I thought of you immediately.” She smiled as he undid the paper and turned the frame over. 

“Phryne…” He looked at it in amazement. 

“Buffalo Bill spent some time in England for the Jubilee. It’s his original signature on the poster.” 

“He signed this?”

“Mmhm. Do you like it?” She smiled. 

“I couldn’t love it more if Father Christmas himself had delivered it to me at 10 years old.” He grinned as he set it down and stood up to give her a hug. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, but I’m afraid I am selfishly substituting this poster so I can keep your pin.” She informed him.

“Keep it.” He shrugged as his hand stole a stroke up her spine. “It used to be my most cherished possession but I think I’ve found something else I cherish more.”

“Are you calling me a possession?” She teased as she raised herself onto her tip toes.

“I don’t believe I mentioned you at all, Miss Fisher.” He volleyed before Phryne kissed him first for once. She wasn't rushed, but Jack tasted her fire all the same. They continued on that way until Jack felt her deft fingers unbuttoning his waistcoat.

“Phryne, you only just got home.” He whispered. “Do you really want to do this tonight?”

“I really do.” He saw she was serious. “Unless you don’t…” She took a step back, suddenly self-conscious. 

“I do.” He rushed to close the distance and reassure her with a peck on her lips. “I only meant, I’m not going anywhere. We have time.” 

“I don’t want to wait another moment.” She murmured. 

“Then let’s go upstairs.” He nodded and gestured towards the parlor doors.

She took him by the hand and led him to her bedroom. 

“May I…” She asked as she gestured to his clothes.

She was asking permission to undress him. His heart overflowed at the unimaginable question.

“Phryne, I’m already in your bedroom. You don’t have to ask.” He smiled at her awkwardness.

“I'm sorry, I’m…” She paused. “It’s you, Jack.” She sighed. “I don't know how to do  _ this _ with someone I know so well.” She confessed. 

“It’s been awhile since I've done  _ this _ ,” he copied her inflection, “myself but I think you’ll find that the mechanics are the same no matter the partner.” 

“They aren't.” She assured him, touching her forehead to his. 

He touched her cheek and kissed her slowly, taking the lead. She melted into his body and he held her there, letting her lose herself in the moment. 

“I love you.” She exhaled against his neck, so quiet that he barely heard it. “That’s why it's different.” 

He could feel her shaking hands brushing against his neck and he tilted her chin up to him. 

“I love you too, Phryne.” He replied quietly. “Let me show you?” He requested, asking permission for more than just tonight.

Phryne looked deeply into his eyes and searched them for something before nodding and sealing the pact with a kiss.

And Jack knew he would spend the rest of his life doing just that.


	24. Goose

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas Eve Day, Readers! I can't believe there is only one chapter left to write! Y’all have been the best reviewers and supporters a girl could ask for and I hope these little stories were a bright spot in your day as much as I escaped while writing them.
> 
> Hypatia200 chose the word Goose.

Phryne had offered to keep her door unlocked and Jack had thought it too risky. Now as he was tucked up in bed, trying to relax long enough to catch some sleep, he changed his mind.

He tiptoed down the hall and knocked lightly on her door.

“Jack?” Phryne whispered as she opened the door partially. “Is everything alright?”

“I can’t sleep knowing you're down the hall by yourself.” He murmured.

“Then by all means...” She invited him in.

He took a step in and she shivered and stoked the fire before grabbing the goose-down doona of the bed and nodding to the rug in front of the fire.

“Come sit with me.” She offered a corner of the blanket and he gladly threw it over his shoulder as well, sitting close to her.

They sat like that, side by side, for a quiet moment, both of them lost in their thoughts.

“Jack?” Phryne finally spoke.

“Hmm?”

“If Aunt P hadn’t interrupted us, would you have…”

“kissed you? That was the plan.” He smirked.

“Would you have come upstairs?”

Jack stared into the fire.

“I’m not sure. Possibly.” He answered truthfully.

“We're...getting closer to something, aren’t we?” She told him.

“Do you want to be?” He asked her as he turned to look at her. Now it was her turn to look into the flames.

“I don't know.”

He watched the flames dance over her pale skin.

“I do want you.” She replied, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth at his pleased face. “But I don't know if I can do the rest.”

“What more is there?” He asked.

“Commitment. To you.”

He didn't respond.

“I want to give you what you need.”

“I need you.” Jack said simply. “The rest will sort itself out.”

She turned in surprise. He leaned in and kissed her lightly. It was meant to be a question, one that she could pull away from if she wanted to. Instead, she did the opposite, pulling him down over top of her, and wrapping her leg around his, tangling their bodies together.

Jack was almost completely thoughtless by the time she pulled away from his lips to kiss his forehead, nose and jaw. She nipped at his skin, leaving a red trail wherever she went.

Jack’s hands moved to caress her hips.

“Phryne,” he moaned as she arched her hips to grind into his own, “oh, what are we doing?” He sighed.

“Shhh, giving in.” She replied, not knowing either.

“I don’t have…” He moaned as she covered his mouth with her own.

“That’s alright.” She murmured as she began undressing him. “I do.”

Her hands found his back and she couldn’t resist scraping her nails down his bare spine.

Jack nearly whimpered as every ounce of blood in his body rushed toward his cock. To get his revenge, he tugged her silk pajama top off her and captured her breast in his mouth.

The sound that escaped from the back of her throat made him dizzy.

“Oh, Jack…” She moaned and he felt it vibrate through every fiber of his being. “Oh, don't stop.” She cried and he seriously wondered if she would climax from just his mouth on her breasts. He suckled lightly as his fingers slipped inside her silk pajama pants. She wriggled out of them, all too happy to make things easier for him.

He slipped his fingers between her wet folds, lubricating his fingers before slipping them inside her.

Phryne gasped as Jack slid down her body, anticipating what would come next. He tongued her clit as his fingers pumped inside her and she clutched his hair, pressing him tighter to her core. She let out a cry and pulsed wildly around his fingers as she came. She was trembling when he came up to meet her

“Oh, god. Jack…” She smiled as she saw him again. “If that’s your idea of foreplay…” She chuckled and touched his cheek.

“Shall we move to the bed?” He asked her and she glanced to the fire beside her.

“I’m fine here if you are.” She grinned. “Prophylactics are in the case on the dresser.” She instructed. He sat up on his knees and reached for the case. He brought it down to the floor and opened it. Phryne sat up and pulled one from its tin and rolled it onto him.

“Mmmm.” He gritted his teeth as she played with his testicles as she left him.

“How do you want me, Inspector?” She whispered in his ear and Jack realized he had choices.

“Now.” He replied honestly and she laughed as she fell backwards onto the doona.

“Then come take me.” She reached out for his hand and he moved over top of her.

“Are you ready?”

“Immensely.” She spread her legs wider, wrapping them around his waist and he pressed his way into her.

“Oh God.” He groaned at finally being inside her. “Phryne...”

“Yes.” She sighed.

“You feel…” He didn't have words as he thrust himself into her once more.

“Yes.” She agreed mindlessly as her hips twisted and jerked to the rhythm their bodies had found. They fell into a silence punctuated with moans and cries until Jack finally splintered and she came after him, her muscles milking him until he slipped from her.

Jack got up when he could and disposed of the condom. He added a log to the fire before returning to her side.

Phryne stroked his chest lovingly.

“When we get home, I want you to come to dinner, Jack.” She murmured quietly. “A proper dinner date, with candlelight and drinks. We can sort out what happens next and how. It might be backwards, but…”

“Yes.” He agreed, stopping her hand with his. He intertwined their fingers. “I would like that.”

She smiled, pleased with his response.

“But we should sleep now. We have a case to solve in the morning.” He added, hating to be the one to bring them back to reality.

“Right.” She remembered. “Bit of a day, wasn't it?” She smiled.

“Quite.” He chuckled.

“Do you want to move to the bed?” She asked.

Jack considered the fact that she wasn’t sending him back to his room a good sign. Maybe she had solved her earlier conundrum.

“I’m fine here if you are.” He replied and she grinned before curling up in his arms.


	25. Lambent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We did it, y’all. We made it to the end. Thank you for all that you’ve done this past month to make writing every day bearable. Kudos to Dispatch22705 and Fire_Sign for showing up every day with amazing posts and inspiring me all month long. I’ll see you lot in January for more Phracking Fridays!
> 
> SuiGeneris221B chose the word lambent.
> 
> Hypatia200 chose the word ornament.

 

When Jack returned to the parlor, Phryne was nowhere to be found. That is, until he saw her feet sticking out from under the Christmas tree.

“How much eggnog did you have?” He chuckled as he stood over her. 

“Come down here.” Her hand appeared from beneath the tree to reach for him. “Please?” 

He sighed and sat down on the ground before sliding himself under the tree. 

“Look up.” She instructed and he was met with a sight that looked remarkably like stars. The lambent light from the bulbs mixed with the gold ornaments to create a beautiful sight. 

“Wow.” He murmured as he turned to look at her, slightly amazed at her ability to find new ways to change his outlook, even now. 

“Isn’t it beautiful?” She asked, mesmerized by the sight. 

“Yes.” He agreed, lost in her features. She felt his stare and she turned to look at him and he smiled softly at being caught. 

He felt her finger rub up against his and he stroked the soft skin with his own finger.

God, she made it easy to love her.

“I am quite in love with you, have I told you that lately?” He asked.

“Yes.” She smiled. “But tell me again.” She scooched closer, wanting to put her ear as close to his mouth as possible.

“I met this woman once,” he began, “on an ordinary afternoon in July. I was called to the home of a wealthy family to solve the murder of the family patriarch Mr. Andrews.”

“And when you finished interviewing the family, you found you had been locked out of your own crime scene.” Phryne tsked. “Hardly professional, Inspector.”

“Yes, well, when I finally got the interloper to open the door, I was shocked to see a beautiful woman on the other side.”

“What was her name?” Phryne asked.

“Trouble.” Jack smiled. 

“But she ended up being the best partner you ever had.” Phryne encouraged. 

“And I fell in love with her brilliant mind, and her generous heart, and her incredibly lithe body.”

“How much eggnog did  _ you _ have, Jack?” She grinned at his salacious comment.

He winked at her before continuing. 

“And after a few years of quoting Shakespeare to her, she finally succumbed to my constabulary charm.”

“And after trying for two years to get him up her staircase, he finally gave in and let her bed him the way she always knew she would.” She countered. 

“And now here we are, lying under a Christmas tree.”

“I like it here.” She insisted. “It’s quite cozy, and hidden away. Anything could happen.” She smiled.

“Miss Fisher, surely you are not suggesting what I think you are suggesting?” He smirked as his hand left hers and found her knee.

She put her feet on the floor and her legs parted, her dress and slip sliding to her hips. 

Jack ran his hand slowly up her thigh, moving over her skin at a snail’s pace.

“Jack…” She gasped as he found her aching core and slipped his fingers inside her lazily. He stroked along the top of her walls until he found the spot that always drove her wild.

“Look up.” He whispered and he watched her eyes glaze over as he whispered sweet nothings in her ear, his hand out of sight. 

She was letting out the quietest pants and mewls as his words and actions pushed her into a slow but long rippling orgasm. Her eyes never left the swirling lights above her.

When she finally came down, Jack felt her muscles melt into the floor and he grinned with pride.

“Happy Christmas, Phryne.” He murmured in her ear. 

“Happy Christmas, Jack.” She sighed.


End file.
